Following In Your Pawsteps
by Berryfern
Summary: Sequel to Jayfeather's Forbidden Love.  The new discovery of SandClan is terrifying, but it's also a huge opportunity to change the Clan.  But will the change be for better, or for worse?
1. Preface

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN WARRIORS, NOR DO I CLAIM TO!**

**This is the sequel to my first FanFiction called ****Jayfeather's Forbidden Love****. I hope all of my fans will love this story as much as they loved the last one.**

It has been nearly 4 moons since Cinderheart died, and Twigkit is doing well. She was just told that she'd become an apprentice with Sootkit.

Sootkit became less jealous of Twigkit's attention, especially since she seemed like a normal kit now. Nobody cheered when she did stuff any other kit can do, nobody crowded around her when she was awake, and no one gave her special treatment.

Dovepaw and Ivypaw received their warrior names last moon. They are now Dovewing and Ivysong.

Lionblaze has found his perfect mate after the grief of losing his second love. Icecloud delivered his kits a couple moons ago. They named their three kits Cinderkit, Ripplekit, and Hollykit in honor of the cats close to them who died.

Mousefur died peacefully a quarter moon ago. Her body decided it was time, and she died while she was asleep. The Clan held a vigil and buried her beneath the Sky Oak next to Longtail.

Also, Molekit and Cherrykit became apprentices a few sunrises ago. Their mentors are Whitewing and Brightheart.

Prey has been running better than ever, and the Clans are being civil. They aren't so hostile when they meet on the border anymore, and they've learned to get along at Gatherings. In fact, they're preparing to send a patrol out on a Journey to visit SandClan.

SandClan was recently discovered by a cat who was once a ThunderClan cat. Ravenpaw had come back after deciding that he missed Clan life. On his way, he had passed through a barren wasteland where he met another Clan. They were called SandClan, and they lived in dens that they dug in the ground.

But what shocked the Clans was that SandClan was made up of cats from RiverClan, ThunderClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan. In fact, Ravenpaw had recognized every face.

How could cats from different Clans get along so well?

That's why the four Clans were sending a patrol of cats to stay with SandClan for a while and learn from them. Will this new way of life destroy the Clans, or will it improve them?

**Sorry for the long intro. I just wanted to give some information on what has happened since Cinderheart died. So, the real story starts on the next chapter.**


	2. Mysterious Gaze

Twigkit squirmed as Ferncloud groomed her fur.

"Sit still, would you? Your squirming isn't helping me groom you." Ferncloud's tongue rasped against her body again as Twigkit tried to sit still.

When she was finished being groomed, Bramblestar leaped onto the Highledge and smoothed a cowlick on his chest before calling for a Clan meeting.

As cats poured out from the dens, Twigkit and her brother waited anxiously for the meeting to start. Today they turned six moons old, and they'd become apprentices.

"This is a proud day for ThunderClan. By naming apprentices, we show that our Clan will survive and remain strong. Sootkit, please step forward." Sootkit pranced forward to stand beneath the Highledge, staring up at his leader.

"From now until you receive your warrior name, you shall be known as Sootpaw. Foxleap, you will mentor Sootpaw. I know you will pass on your strength and bravery to your apprentice and teach him the skills that will make him a brave warrior of ThunderClan." Foxleap nodded and touched noses with Sootpaw.

"Twigkit, please step forward." The Clan cats all turned to look at her and she felt her cheeks getting hot in the beginning of a blush. She walked through the mass of cats until she stood before Bramblestar.

"From now until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Twigpaw. Cloudtail, you are ready for an apprentice, so you will mentor Twigpaw. I know you will pass on your patience and rationality to your apprentice and teach her the skills she will need to become a brave warrior of ThunderClan." Cloudtail nodded as Foxleap had done and touched noses with Twigpaw.

Bramblestar finished the meeting with a few reassurances about the journey to SandClan. The whole Clan had been fretting over it since they found out that the Clan leaders would be going so that they could lead their Clans differently. Twigpaw recalled the day they'd been told who was going.

"_But you can't send Rosepetal! She's one of the youngest warriors in the Clan! Surely you could send a more experienced warrior? What if she gets hurt?" Daisy had fretted over her kit the day she found out._

"_She's a brave warrior; she'll be fine," Bramblestar soothed her. "This Journey isn't a hard one, according to Ravenpaw." Daisy hissed._

"_You can't send my kit into the unknown based only on one cat's opinion about the journey!"_

"_Daisy, it's what Clan cats do. We do things like this to improve our Clan," Cloudtail sounded irritated by her behavior._

"_I don't care! You are not sending Rosepetal away!"_

"_Daisy, quit being unreasonable! Rosepetal promised to uphold the warrior code, and this is part of her duty! Have you asked her what she wants to do," Spiderleg snarled._

"_No. Rosepetal, do you want to go, or not?"_

"_I want to serve my Clan, so yes."_

The arguments had gone on for a while, but all Twigkit could remember was that one situation. Daisy had been very stubborn and irritable lately, but everyone knew it was because she and Spiderleg weren't getting along very well lately, so they had some sympathy for her.

"I've talked with the other Clan leaders, and we've decided to wait a moon or so before we leave so that we can train the cats going on the journey for whatever harsh conditions they may face." Bramblestar's announcement snapped Twigpaw out of her memories.

"I've also decided to send all of the current apprentices. Since they'll be learning new techniques on the journey, it will be a good experience for them, and they'll be doing their training while they stay with SandClan." The four apprentices looked at each other in excitement.

"But that means that there is no time for Twigpaw and Sootpaw to get a tour around the territory. The cats going on the journey need to follow me out into the forest to start training." He leaped down and made his way across the clearing as cats dispersed to where they were going. Several went back into dens to rest, and many went out to hunt, but most of the cats in the clearing grouped together and followed Bramblestar out into the forest.

When they made it to the training hollow, the leader turned around and faced the cats.

"Ravenpaw described that in SandClan's territory, there isn't much water, so we need to prepare for that. That means, that from now until we leave, our water will be limited. We will each have a puddle of water in the forest, and that puddle will have to last us the whole day." Bramblestar dug a hole in the ground. "Everyone's hole should be about this big."

The cats began to dig their holes, so Twigpaw and her brother dug their holes, too. They had theirs right next to each other.

"Let's go gather some water to fill these with." Bramblestar led the way to the lake and they soaked wads of moss and carried them back to the training hollow. They did this several times before the puddles were full.

"Everyone will need to refill these every day until we leave." The cats nodded, and some looked weary about the water restrictions.

"Ravenpaw also told me that it's very hot. We really have no way to prepare for this except not to cool off when we overheat. If we do that in SandClan territory, we'll waste our much needed water. Everyone will just have to tough out the heat or take shelter in the shade," Bramblestar meowed sternly.

Several yowls of protest arose, but when the leader explained that they might die of thirst if they weren't careful, the cats settled down. Twigkit looked at her brother warily, and he leaned in to whisper something in her ear.

"I'm not feeling so sure about this." Sootpaw's mew sounded shaky, as if he was about to cry.

"We'll be okay. Bramblestar won't let us die." Sootpaw didn't look reassured, but at least he didn't look like he was about to cry anymore.

"So, I've also heard that the prey is very hard to catch, so we all need to refine our skills. Everyone, break up into groups of three. Ravenpaw also told me that SandClan hunts in groups." Twigpaw stuck by her brother and waited for someone to approach them. The first cat to approach them was Bramblestar.

"Twigpaw, I'd like to train you alone. Sootpaw, can you go group up with another group?" Sootpaw nodded and bounded away, leaving Bramblestar and Twigpaw alone.

"I think you might be better off training one on one with me. I've been thinking about new hunting techniques that will work for you, and I think I have a couple worked out." He led her farther into the forest and stopped about halfway to the lake.

"Most cats use the hunter's crouch, but I'm not sure if that will work for you. Try it." Bramblestar dropped into the hunter's crouch, and so did Twigpaw.

There was no problem with her crouch except that it was hard for her to keep her balance. The first time she tried it, her tail was whirling in giant circles to keep her from falling over, and Bramblestar told her to keep her tail still and low to the ground. She tried it, but fell over instantly.

"Well, crouches are going to be difficult for you. Perhaps if you just try walking very slowly, it would suffice for hunting. Your fur should help you blend in." Twigpaw spotted a mouse scuffling among the roots of a tree, and she tried the technique.

She moved slowly and silently through the undergrowth, and when she was close enough to catch it, she wondered how she'd trap it.

Perhaps she could slam her front paw onto it's back and hope she paralyzed it.

She pushed off with her back legs, and slammed her forepaw as hard as she could onto the prey's back. Her move was successful, but not only had she broken the mouse's back, but she had also flattened it's body. There was no way any cat could eat it now.

"That was a smart idea you had, but maybe you could hit your next target less hard." Bramblestar's voice startled her, and she turned around, embarrassed.

"I know. I just didn't know how hard to hit it, so I hit it as hard as I could." He nodded in understanding.

"We'll work on it. Come on, let me show you some hunting techniques Ravenpaw taught me that SandClan uses."

As he showed her some moves, she smelled something that she'd never smelled before. She turned her head towards it and saw a pair of green eyes looking at her from behind a bush across the border with ShadowClan.

Just as she was going to tell Bramblestar, the eyes blinked, and she decided not to say anything. There was something about that gaze that calmed her.

And then the eyes were gone.


	3. It Begins

Sootpaw woke with a start, and when he looked around the den, the other three apprentices were staring at him.

"Can you keep it down? You were mewing in your sleep," Molepaw hissed. "Yesterday was tiring, and we all want some sleep!" The irritated apprentice lowered his head onto his paws and closed his eyes.

"Oh, by the way, you're on the dawn patrol. Cloudtail should be in to wake you before too long," Twigpaw whispered. Sootpaw peeked out of the den and saw that the sky was grey. The dawn patrol would be leaving soon.

"Thanks. I might as well get up now." He rose to his paws and slipped out into the morning air. Cloudtail was already up and gathering everyone for the dawn patrol, so Sootpaw trotted over to him.

"Oh, Sootpaw, I thought you knew that I had replaced you with another cat in the dawn patrol so you could rest. I know yesterday was long and tiring with all the training." Cloudtail flicked his tail, motioning for him to go back to sleep.

"Well, I actually didn't know I was ever on this morning's dawn patrol until Twigpaw told me. She told me when I woke up this morning," Sootpaw mewed, not wanting to go back to his den.

"Okay. You can tag along with us if you'd like." The grey apprentice nodded and followed the patrol out into the forest.

The patrol checked the WindClan border and found nothing unusual, so they were moving on to the ShadowClan border. Sootpaw felt unnerved by something as they stopped to investigate a bush just inside our border.

"I smell ShadowClan on it. Stale, though. I'd say they were here yesterday," Brackenfur meowed, his fur bristling a little. Cloudtail sniffed at the bush to make sure Brackenfur was right.

"Yep, it's ShadowClan all right. But it doesn't smell like a patrol; just one cat. I don't think they meant harm when they were here. We'll check this daily from now on, though. If it happens again, we'll have to do something about it."

Brackenfur forced his fur to lie flat as the patrol continued along the border, sniffing for any more scents. They found none, but Sootpaw couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. When they strayed from the border, Sootpaw relaxed.

Cats mewed anxiously inside the camp, each having their own worries about the harsh leafbare that was nearly upon them, while Jayfeather hurried around the camp with herbs in his jaws.

"Hey Sootpaw!" His sister had approached him while he was busy paying attention to all the bustle in the camp. "I was wondering if you wanted to go hunting with me?"

"Sure." The grey apprentice nosed his way out of camp with Twigpaw on his tail. "Where should we hunt?"

"Maybe we should try the old beech tree," Twigpaw mewed. She flicked her tail toward the trees to her right.

"Good idea." The two cats padded along silently, alert for prey, until they came to a small clearing where giant roots were entangled in the ground and a beech tree rose in the center.

"I'll go this way," Sootpaw motioned to the left of the tree, "and you go that way," he flicked his tail to the right. Twigpaw nodded and made her way to the right side of the tree while Sootpaw went left.

He slipped into a bush and waited silently until a mouse emerged from among the roots and began to nibble on something in it's paws. Sootpaw flattened himself to the ground and slithered forward until he was within pouncing distance of his prey. He wriggled his haunches and steadied himself as he prepared to pounce.

Leaves rustled and crunched from the other side of the beech when Twigpaw pounced on her prey and made a sloppy kill. The mouse sat up, alerted to the cats' presence, and darted back into it's hole.

"Mouse-dung!" Sootpaw hissed in frustration. Twigpaw came prancing around the tree with a scrawny mouse dangling from her jaws.

"Look at what I caught!"

"Couldn't you have been quieter? I would've caught a mouse twice that size if you hadn't scared it away!" His sister flattened her ears to her head.

"Sorry. I lost my footing when the ground beneath my paws gave way. I must've jumped on a burrow or something and it collapsed." Sootpaw immediately regretted his tone with her.

"I'm sorry, Twigpaw. I didn't know-"

"I understand. I would've been frustrated, too. I'll be quiet now so you can catch something." She hid in the undergrowth behind him as he waited for another animal to come out of it's burrow.

Before long, another mouse almost the size of the one that escaped from him poked it's nose out of it's den and came out to nibble on a nut. It took Sootpaw only a few heartbeats to be ready and pounce on it, killing his prey with a swift bite to the neck.

"Great catch!" Twigpaw was admiring his catch while he cleaned the blood from the fur to make it presentable to the Clan.

"My kill was sloppy, though."

"Oh well. At least it'll feed the Clan. Let's get it back to camp while it's still warm. I'm sure the elders would like a fresh piece." Sootpaw could barely manage to carry the mouse home on his own, and he kept stumbling over the mouse's haunches as he struggled to get it into camp.

He puffed his chest out with pride when he got complements from his clanmates. Finally they were noticing him. But then when Twigpaw followed him in with her first catch, the Clan was practically fighting each other to be the first to congratulate her. Just when he thought they were equal, this happened.

He threw his mouse onto the fresh-kill pile and went to his den. He forced his eyes shut and drifted into sleep.


	4. Why?

Twigpaw padded halfway back to camp before she decided to go investigate along the ShadowClan border and see if that mysterious cat was there again.

"I'm going to go hunt in the pines," she mewed to the rest of the patrol.

"All right, but be careful not to cross the border." Sorreltail flicked her tail and dismissed her.

"See you back at camp, Twigpaw," her brother called as she raced toward the ShadowClan border. She couldn't wait to shred the cat who was stalking her Clanmates.

As she came upon the ShadowClan border, she halted and hid in a bush when she heard rustling in the pine needles across the border. She watched, eyes wide open, as a pair of bright green eyes glowed in a bush just on the ShadowClan side of the border.

"Who are you?" Twigpaw was careful not to show herself, though the cat looked straight at her. She got no response except for a blink. "Well? Who are you and why do you watch my Clanmates on patrols?"

Still no response. Just as she prepared herself to ask again, the eyes looked to their right and then blinked closed as a brown tabby appeared and sniffed the border.

_Tigerheart?_

He waited there for a long time before he pricked his ears and looked across the border.

_Oh no! Has he smelled me?_

"Dovewing!" The brown tom whispered the name across the border. "Is that you?" She was about to say "no" when another cat answered from behind her.

"Yes." The grey-furred she-cat stepped out of the undergrowth.

_Great StarClan! Is every cat in the Clans here?_

"I'm so happy to see you," Tigerheart's mew came out as a purr and Twigpaw could feel the affection in the air.

"Me too. I can't believe our Clanmates haven't found out yet. This might actually work." Twigpaw could feel the hope rising in Dovewing's chest.

"It will." Tigerheart pressed his muzzle to his mate's cheek and purred. "I love you."

"I love you too."

_What!_ How could Dovewing betray her Clan like this?

"You're sure none of your Clanmates know about this?" Twigpaw could hear the nervousness in the ShadowClan warrior's mew.

"Absolutely. Not even my sister," Dovewing stiffened as the last sentence escaped her throat. It was obvious to Twigpaw that it was a blatant lie.

"Come on. I had something special planned tonight." He led the grey she-cat away and Twigpaw breathed a sigh of relief. What in the name of StarClan was Dovewing thinking? She was the best hunter in all the Clans and she was throwing it away by secretly meeting Tigerheart!

"Mouse-brain," Twigpaw muttered. She shuffled backwards out of the bush and was about to head to camp when she thought about how many cats would wonder where she'd been.

_I'll hunt and then tell them I couldn't sleep._

She opened her mouth and tasted all the scents, but it was mostly the approaching frost that clogged her nose and bathed her tongue. She breathed in deeply and caught a whiff of prey-scent. Her paws carried her toward the smell and she paused when a large creature came into view.

_Pheasant!_

She almost yowled for joy at the sight. That bird could feed the whole Clan! It was huge!

Twigpaw slowly dropped into a crouch, careful not to lose her balance. She bunched her muscles and cautiously drew herself forward. The pheasant's head shot up and the small apprentice stiffened, holding her breath. Soon it lost interest in whatever it heard and went back to nibbling on a small nut.

She leaped onto the bird and drew her back legs forward, trapping the bird between her front and hind legs as she delivered the killing bite. The bird went limp in her grasp, and she stood up to admire her catch.

_The Clan will be so proud of me! _She knew that this catch might be what kept her Clan from starving. Almost every leafbare, one cat would be severely sickened or die from hunger in her Clan. With any luck, this pheasant would prevent that this time.

She sank her teeth into the skin on the bird's neck and drug it back to camp, hoping that she didn't scare all the prey away with the noise she was making. Huffing, she dropped the pheasant onto the fresh-kill pile with a _thud_.

Immediately, heads poked out from dens and surprised yowls started to erupt from around the clearing as the cats hurried to see her catch.

"Did you catch this?" Twigpaw nodded happily.

"That's amazing!"

"Great catch!"

"This'll feed the whole Clan!" Twigpaw looked at her paws, embarrassed by all the compliments.

"It's really nothing."

"Yes it is! It's amazing! I haven't had pheasant in seasons!" Mousefur had joined the commotion, too.

Twigpaw didn't see Sootpaw anywhere. She looked over at the apprentice den to see if he was there, and he was. He looked downcast, sad, and upset. Twigpaw saw him throw her a hateful glare and stalk back into the den.

What was up with him? He seemed so angry and mean lately. Why couldn't he just be happy for her?


	5. Thistleclaw

_Sootpaw awakoke in a shadowy forest he didn't recognize._

"_Hello?" The only answer to his mew was an owl hooting in the distance. He looked around and spotted sunlight coming through the trees. Sootpaw raced as fast as he could toward it, wanting to be out of the darkness._

_When he was about to burst out of the trees, a mottled grey tom with a long tail stepped in front of him and he skidded to a halt._

"_W-who are you?" Sootpaw began to back away. The tom stared down at the apprentice._

"_My name is Thistleclaw. Who are you?" Something about this cat scared Sootpaw, but he was determined not to show it._

"_Sootpaw of ThunderClan." Thistleclaw thrust his muzzle into his face and his rancid breath stung Sootpaw's eyes. The grey apprentice flinched. Then the tom backed out of his face and smoothed the ruffled fur on his shoulders._

"_Do you want to see something cool?" Sootpaw was hesitant. "I've seen how jealous you are of hour sister." The apprentice stiffened. "I could help you make it different, though. I could make your sister jealous of you." Sootpaw perked up._

"_Really?" Thistleclaw sneers at Sootpaw, but he didn't notice._

"_Of course. Follow me." The tom led him back into the swamping darkness that he'd just escaped. They padded along in silence, and Sootpaw could hear every pawstep, every claw that scraped on rock, and every leaf that fell from the trees. Suddenly, those noises came to a dead stop._

_Sootpaw felt the eerie silence crowd in around him, and it felt like he was standing in a river, the current tugging at his paws._

"_No! Don't go yet! I wanted to show you…" Thistleclaw's voice trailed away as Sootpaw let the current sweep his paws from beneath him. He was exhausted, and he let sleep engulf him._

"…Sootpaw? Sootpaw?" He felt a paw prod him in the side. Blinking away the sleep in his eyes, he looked up at the cat nudging him.

"Sootpaw, you were supposed to go hunting with me this morning, but you were asleep." He could smell the forest on his sister's fur.

"Sorry."

"Sorry doesn't catch prey. You should have been up for patrol." Dustpelt shouldered his way into the den. "Since you weren't, you'll have to make up for it. You're caring for the elders today. That means you are giving them herbs for their aches and needs, fetching their prey, and listening to their stories," Dustpelt meowed. Sootpaw flattened his ears to his head and he felt hot with embarrassment.

"Sorry," he muttered.

"Go to the elders' den and see if there's anything you can do for them. If not, then go to Jayfeather and ask him if the elders need checked for ticks or something. If there's still nothing to do, listen to some of the elders' stories. It will make them feel useful." Dustpelt flicked his tail and padded away.

"Don't worry. I'm sure there will be something to do." Twigpaw made her way out of the den cautiously, and Sootpaw went to the elders' den.

"Hi. Dustpelt said I should come see if you needed anything." He looked at Mousefur and Purdy.

"I'm in the mood for a shrew," Mousefur grumbled. Sootpaw nodded and turned to Purdy.

"Do you want anything from the pile?" Purdy looked up at him and smiled.

"Nah. I'll get something later. But my joints are aching a little bit. Could you get some herbs from Jayfeather?" The grey apprentice turned and left the den. He went to the medicine den and told Jayfeather that Purdy needed some herbs.

"He said that his joints are aching." Jayfeather nodded.

"It seems that they're always aching lately. I'm afraid he may not be able to walk soon if this keeps up." He gathered up some herbs and went to the elder's den while Sootpaw picked a shrew from the fresh-kill pile. He took it to the elders' den and sat it in front of Mousefur.

"Apprentices. They always pick the scrawniest piece of prey from the pile for the elders," Mousefur grumbled as she took a bite of the shrew.

"Don't mind her, Sootpaw. Mousefur's always grumpy," Purdy's mew rumbled with a hint of a purr. Sootpaw smiled. He liked Purdy. The elder seemed to be the only cat that saw he and his sister equally. "Go on. I'm sure you'd rather be out hunting or playing with your friends than be here."

"Actually, I'd like to hear some stories." He settled down onto his haunches and waited for Purdy to start one of the stories from when he was younger.

"Well, there was this one time when I was a youngster, probably no older than you, and I really liked this one kit. Her name was Ginger, and she was the prettiest she-cat I'd ever seen." As Purdy rambled on, Sootpaw's mind drifted back to the eyes he'd seen in the forest a few sunrises ago. What cat did those eyes belong to? Maybe he could identify them at the next gathering.

The sun was setting outside, and Purdy told Sootpaw to get some rest. The apprentice's paws felt like boulders as he lugged himself into the apprentice's den for the night. In the back of his mind, he thought about the forest he'd visited in his dreams last night.

He hoped he could visit Thistleclaw again tonight.


	6. Molepaw's Fascination

Twigpaw looked up at the night sky and realized that she had fallen asleep last night while she was out hunting. She jumped up and looked around to see if anyone had saw her and then turned to go back to camp.

Halfway there, Molepaw came out of nowhere and ran beside her. Twigpaw skidded to a halt.

"Molepaw! You scared me out of my fur!" Molepaw padded over to her and flicked her shoulder with his tail-tip.

"Sorry. I saw you sleeping by a tree and watched to make sure a fox didn't come by and get you." Twigpaw felt a moment of affection for the apprentice, but it was soon replaced with feelings of anger and frustration.

"That's no reason to scare me to death!" She flinched as Molepaw shrunk away from her. "I'm sorry. I was just surprised, that's all. Thanks." He nodded and they continued on to camp together.

When they got to the entrance, Lionblaze, Mousewhisker, and Foxleap were working on the brambles guarding the camp.

"Be careful getting into camp. The brambles aren't trimmed up yet, so they might scratch your pelt," Lionblaze meowed. Twigpaw nodded and pushed her way into camp. She turned around to wait for Molepaw, and snorted in amusement at what she saw,.

He was stuck in the entrance with brambles clinging to his fur as he struggled to get free.

"Don't struggle! I'll get Squirrelflight!" Brambleclaw's voice called from somewhere behind her as he rushed to get his former mate. She emerged from the warrior's den and gathered some herbs from Jayfeather's herb store before chewing them up and applying them to Molepaw's grey pelt.

"Don't laugh at me!" Molepaw's mew of protest didn't seem at all playful, so Twigpaw stopped as soon as she could.

When Molepaw was freed, he didn't even look at Twigpaw before he went to the medicine den to wash the herbs off his pelt. The tabby she-cat couldn't help but laugh when Jayfeather nearly threw her denmate out of his herb store.

"Don't wash herbs off in the pool that sick cats drink from! The herbs on your pelt could be harmful to some!" Jayfeather's irritation pricked from his pelt as he grumbled in his den.

Molepaw emerged from the den and left camp, being careful not to get caught again. Twigpaw's whiskers twitched and she followed him, keeping a safe distance between them.

The gray apprentice swerved through the trees and came to the stream near the WindClan border. He washed the herbs from his pelt and hopped out of the stream. Twigpaw noticed his muscles ripple beneath his wet fur.

Molepaw shook the water from his fur. Suddenly, he stopped and stiffened. He turned his head toward the border and bristled.

"Who's there?" A ginger she-cat stepped out of the bushes and purred.

"Hello. My name is Ginger. Are you a Clan cat?" Ginger was the prettiest she-cat Twigpaw had ever seen. Her sleek pelt was neatly groomed, and her hazel eyes twinkled. Her fur was longer than most cat's, but not so long it wasn't kept well. She was dazzling.

"I am. My name is Molepaw. I need to take you back to the camp now." He nudged the she-cat forward in the direction of the camp, and although he was trying to look mean and dangerous, Twigpaw could see that he was gawking at the kittypet.

She followed him, silent as a mouse, all the way back to camp. Molepaw had already gone to Bramblestar's den, and everyone was crowded around Ginger.

"Ginger! I haven't seen you in seasons!" Purdy yowled from the elders' den. Ginger smiled, yet was clearly uncomfortable around the old cat.

"Ah, yes. Purdy, aren't you?" She sounded so regal. Her voice seemed to sing like the birds.

"I am. You remember me?" The two cats talked while Twigpaw searched for Molepaw. When she found him, he was standing on Highledge, looking like a leader, as he watched Ginger with wide eyes. Twigpaw felt a pang of jealousy at the look he gave the kittypet.

"Hey, Molepaw!" Twigpaw smiled up at him.

"Oh, yeah, hi Twigpaw." He didn't take his gaze from the ginger cat as he spoke. The tabby apprentice flattened her ears to her head and turned away from him. She noticed Bramblestar questioning the new cat in the center of the clearing, and then he jumped onto Highledge to call a meeting.

"Cats of ThunderClan! There was a kittypet trespassing on our territory." Twigpaw heard mutters of disapproval and hissing from around the clearing. "But she wishes to become an apprentice of ThunderClan, and I believe she should have a fair chance at our way of life. She said she never wanted to be a kittypet, but that she was born into that lifestyle."

What was Bramblestar doing? Kittypets weren't Clan material!

"Ginger, from this day until you receive your warrior name, you shall be known as Gingerpaw. I will mentor you." Clan leader's didn't usually take an apprentice! That was the warriors' job. Perhaps he was saving the new cat from harsh training with the other warriors. They didn't seem too happy about a kittypet joining the Clan.

Bramblestar jumped from the Highledge and led Gingerpaw out into the forest to start her training immediately. Twigpaw looked up at Molepaw and noticed he had left where he was standing just a little while ago. She turned and spotted him right before he left camp to follow the new apprentice.

Twigpaw sighed.

"Having boy troubles?" She jumped at the sound of Whitewing's voice behind her.

"Yeah. I mean, why's Molepaw so fascinated with her? She's a _kittypet!_" Whitewing's eyes widened.

"I know some warriors think kittypets are useless, but Daisy is helpful, and so is Millie. In fact, Firestar was once a kittypet." Twigpaw gasped.

"Really! I never knew that!" She instantly felt guilty for what she'd said. "I didn't mean it like that. Firestar was a great leader, and I'm sure he wasn't ever like Gingerpaw. She seems so snotty and regal." Whitewing smiled and flicked Twigpaw's nose with her tail.

"Either she'll learn to be less elegant, or she'll leave the Clan. She'll find out that Clan life isn't as easy as being a kittypet." The white warrior padded away and left Twigpaw to think.

_She's right. Molepaw won't like her as much when she says Clan life is too hard._


	7. Staying Behind

Sootpaw looked up through the trees and squinted against the sun.

"I think Bramblestar's gone crazy. It's so hot out here!" Berrynose was complaining as he flicked drops of water at his face and chest. "We should be back at camp resting in the shade!"

"Quit mewling like a kit! You're a warrior! This is nothing compared to the drought we had a while ago!" Dustpelt grumbled. "If you can't take this, you can't do to visit SandClan, so toughen up."

Sootpaw stuck his paw in the small puddle of cool water and rubbed it across his face. They were trying to conserve this small source of water, but it didn't seem to be going very well. They had already used over half the puddle, and none of it had been drank.

"Hey!" Twigpaw came over and flicked her brother on the ear with her tail. "Whatcha up to?"

"Not much. This is so boring! There's nothing to do!" Twigpaw snorted.

"Then let's go hunt. I'm sure Bramblestar will be fine with letting us do that." She led Sootpaw over to the leader where he was sharing tongues with Brackenfur.

"Bramblestar, can Sootpaw and I go hunt for a little bit? We figured that if we're out here, we might as well be doing something productive." Sootpaw saw hesitation flash in the leader's eyes, but then he nodded.

"Alright, but be back soon. And don't drink any water while you're out; that's cheating," he called after them as they ran off.

Twigpaw and Sootpaw hunted for a little while and took their catches back to the clearing where the rest of the cats going to visit SandClan were getting ready to go back to camp.

"Sootpaw, can I speak to you? I'll have Lionblaze take your prey back to camp," Bramblestar mewed. Lionblaze took the shrew and the mouse that Sootpaw had killed and walked away so the two cats could speak in private.

"What is it, Bramblestar?" The tom looked a little awkward.

"I don't want you to go on the trip to SandClan. I want you to stay here and help Cloudtail keep the camp under control." Sootpaw barely kept his jaw from dropping open as he stared at his leader in disbelief.

"Why!"

"I think it would be good for you to experience Clan life while the leader's gone. It brings out many cats' true colors." Sootpaw's ears were growing hot as he fought the urge to attack his leader.

"Did I do something wrong?" Bramblestar just shook his head.

"I'm sorry," was all the leader could say as he turned away from the crestfallen apprentice. He led the group of cats away through the trees and left Sootpaw all alone in the forest.

The young cat sat down onto his haunches and looked down. He saw a leaf, so fragile and weak. There was a tearing sound as Sootpaw sliced his claws through it.

"Why can't Twigpaw stay and help Cloudtail?"

"Because everyone thinks she's better than you," a sly whisper stirred Sootpaw's ear fur.

"Who's there?" He turned around, spitting. A shadowy figure loomed in front of him. "Thistleclaw?" Sootpaw still didn't feel completely comfortable around the mottled grey tom, but he wasn't uncomfortable, either.

"You remembered me." Sootpaw expected a purr, but Thistleclaw's mew was almost a growl. "I hope you'll come to me tonight."

"How do I do that?" Thistleclaw's whiskers twitched.

"Didn't you think about where you wanted to go before you went to sleep?" Sootpaw stared at him blankly.

"No. I just… _woke up_ there." The tall shadowy cat sneered.

"Ah. So _you're_ the summoned one, eh? I'll fetch you later and we can get started on making your clanmates notice you more than your sister." His whisper faded away and went with the breeze that tugged on Sootpaw's fur.

The chilled apprentice slunk back to camp and slipped into the apprentice's den. He closed his eyes and waited for blackness to swamp him.

It did, but only for a second.

_His eyes blinked open and he was alone in the shadowy forest he awoke in the night before. Thistleclaw appeared out of thin air and stared down at him._

"_Get up," he hissed. "We start tonight." His voice echoed with an eeriness. "I suggest you pay attention, or I'll have to teach you a lesson."_

_Thistleclaw led Sootpaw through the darkness. Screeches and yowls seemed to hang in the air around him. The trees thinned out into a clearing, and Sootpaw recognized many of the cats there. Tigerheart, Breezepelt, and many other Clan cats were there. But the most shocking appearance was Ivysong._

What is she doing here?

_Suddenly, he was bowled over and a great weight was pushed down on him. Hot, stinky breath bathed Sootpaw's face._

"_I told you to pay attention!" Thistleclaw's claws dug into Sootpaw's side, causing him to yowl in pain. "Now get up and listen for a change!"_

_The pressure was relieved from the apprentice's body and he got to his wobbly paws. He turned to face Thistleclaw who was staring at him, teeth bared and back arched. Suddenly, he lunged for Sootpaw, and the light glinted off his thorn-sharp teeth._

_Sootpaw dodged the snapping jaws and stuck his hind leg out, catching Thistleclaw off-guard and making him face-plant into the dirt. The grey apprentice whirled around to face his attacker. Thistleclaw sneered at him, obviously glad to finally have a cat who posed somewhat of a challenge._

_Then, another cat stepped out of the shadows and stood by Thistleclaw's side._

"_Care to help me, Mistlepond?"_

"_No problem," the spotted she-cat purred with a grin._

_Sootpaw gulped. Two cats against one? That wasn't fair! He braced himself for the attack, but before anyone could move, Ivysong stepped out of the undergrowth and stood beside Sootpaw._

"_Come on, at least give him a fair fight."_

"_Fine…" Some other words were muttered, but Sootpaw's eyes began to close. His paws ached and his side throbbed. Before he knew it, he was collapsed onto the forest floor._


	8. Not The Same

_Twigpaw raced through the woods as fast as her three legs would carry her. She darted and wove between the limbs of the trees reaching out at her._

_One branch snagged her pelt and tore fur from her skin. She yowled into the emptiness that surrounded her as she sped onward._

_Suddenly, the ground disappeared from beneath her and she plummeted downward. Her limbs flailed in vain, trying to stop her fall. The cliff became a canyon, and the canyon became an abyss as the ground never came. Before long, Twigpaw relaxed and let herself fall freely, not afraid of death as her fur was tugged at and whipped around by the wind._

Then she woke up.

Her fur was matted and tangled with burrs and pieces of bracken in it. She was laying on the cold ground, and her nest was strewn all around the den. As she looked around, she noticed four pairs of eyes staring at her.

"Can't you keep it down? Dream about a mouse, or something that DOESN'T INVOLVE MOVEMENT! Maybe you could get paralyzed in your dream, and then maybe we could all get some sleep!" Molepaw's hiss was like a thorn. Ever since he had met Gingerpaw, the apprentice was being particularly rude to all of his clanmates.

"Don't be so mean, Molepaw!" Cherrypaw flicked her tail. "He didn't mean all that, Twigpaw." But the damage was already done.

Twigpaw got up shakily on her three legs to leave the den, but became painfully aware that Gingerpaw was staring her with wide eyes. She whipped around and thrust her muzzle into Gingerpaw's face.

"Quit staring at me like I'm a snake with three eyes!" Gingerpaw flinched, and Twigpaw stormed out of the den.

Her brother was sitting in the clearing, picking at a small mouse. She padded over to him and took his mouse.

"That's alright; I didn't want it anyway." Twigpaw ignored him and threw the mouse back on the fresh-kill pile. She grabbed a plump vole and tossed it to him. He looked up at her in surprise.

"I'm not hungry, really." He pushed the mouse toward his sister.

"You need to eat. We're leaving for SandClan tomorrow at dawn." Sootpaw's eyes darkened.

"I'm not going," he whispered. Twigpaw stared at him in shock.

"What! What do you mean you're not going?" Sootpaw looked up at her with sad eyes.

"Apparently I need to see my clanmates' true colors." Just then, Bramblestar called Molepaw over to him. They spoke for a little while, and then Molepaw raced over to Gingerpaw. Twigpaw pricked her ears and managed to hear the most important part of what Molepaw said.

"…you and I get to go on the SandClan journey!"

"Really?" Gingerpaw sounded shocked that she could go on such an important journey when she'd only been apprenticed a few sunrises ago.

"Well, I had to do a little… _bribing_ to make it happen, but that isn't the point," Molepaw meowed. Gingerpaw purred.

"Thanks, Molepaw!"

Twigpaw could hardly believe her ears. _Bribery!_ Bramblestar would never take a bribe! And even worse, now she had to suffer through the whole trip with those two falling over each other.

"Sootpaw?" Sootpaw looked up at Twigpaw.

"Yeah?"

"I know something that will probably make you mad…" The tabby apprentice looked at her paws. "Do you want me to tell you?"

"Of course I do!" Sootpaw was staring at her expectantly.

"Well… Molepaw _bribed_ Bramblestar… I think he and Gingerpaw took your place on the journey…" Sootpaw flattened his ears to his head.

"Bramblestar would never take a bribe!"

"I heard Molepaw say it with my own ears," Twigpaw protested.

"You're just trying to be the center of attention again! Well guess what? No one cares! No one cares that you can climb the fresh-kill pile! No one cares that you caught a pheasant! No one cares that you have only three legs!" Sootpaw got up and ran out into the forest, and Twigpaw didn't chase him.

She looked around and saw the whole Clan staring except for Molepaw. He was too busy staring at Gingerpaw.

Twigpaw pushed her way into the apprentices' den and pieced her nest back together. When she got the nest back into a recognizable shape, she curled up and stared at the ceiling. She couldn't sleep.

Then she thought about Molepaw. He mooned over the kittypet all day long and never even noticed Twigpaw. A quarter moon ago, Twigpaw considered Molepaw to be her best friend. Now, she didn't know what to think of him. He was too busy with Gingerpaw to even notice anyone else before.

Gingerpaw and Molepaw interrupted her thoughts when they entered the den.

"Try not to attack your nest tonight, will you?" Molepaw curled up in his nest and closed his eyes. Twigpaw just looked at him, her eyes saturated in visible sadness.

Gingerpaw must've noticed because she gave her a look of sympathy.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I know Molepaw is acting differently lately; everyone tells me that he isn't himself. If I made him that way, I am so sorry. Sootpaw told me Molepaw used to be your best friend," Gingerpaw whispered.

"It's okay. It isn't your fault, really. Molepaw has… changed. If you make him happy, then I'm happy." Twigpaw tried to swallow her emotions and not show the sadness in her mew.

"I know that isn't true. I'm sorry, and I'd like it if we could become friends." Gingerpaw curled up into her nest, and Twigpaw was left to her own dark thoughts as the darkness closed in around her.


	9. Leaving

"_I really should be going now. I'm on the dawn patrol-" Thistleclaw hissed._

"_Are you loyal to us, or ThunderClan?" He didn't wait for Sootpaw to answer before he flicked his tail and closed his eyes. "Go. I must rest, anyway." Sootpaw wasted no time laying down and going to sleep. He had hoped for a little bit of rest, but he wasn't granted the privilege._

He woke to a paw prodding him in the side. Twigpaw was standing over him.

"The dawn patrol is leaving soon, and I'm leaving for SandClan before you'll be back." Sootpaw remembered painfully how he wasn't going.

"Yeah, well have fun." He got up and pushed his way out of the den and padded over to where Brackenfur, Rosepetal, and Molepaw were gathered to go on patrol.

"Bye, Sootpaw!" Twigpaw shouted after him. He ignored her, and he didn't even know why. For some reason, he wasn't in a good mood. Gingerpaw's annoying mew didn't help.

"Mind if I tag along?" Her voice was like honey, soothing and warm, but it only rubbed his fur the wrong way. Molepaw worshipped her for no reason, and that irritated him too. He brought her fresh-kill, groomed her fur for her, and did virtually everything for her. She hardly ever left camp because poor love struck Molepaw did everything for her.

"You're leaving for SandClan soon. You won't be back in time," Brackenfur meowed. Molepaw gave a pleading glance at him, but the ginger tom ignored him.

Without a word, Molepaw brushed his cheek against Gingerpaw's before she bounded away. Twigpaw's eyes were ablaze with fury. Everyone knew Molepaw and Sootpaw's sister had been flirting with each other until Gingerpaw came. Then Molepaw began to treat Twigpaw like a cat from another Clan.

"Sootpaw, are you coming or not?" Rosepetal had waited for him while the other two cats had gone on ahead.

"Yeah." He ran up to her and they caught up to the rest of the patrol.

"Staring at Gingerpaw, eh Sootpaw?" Molepaw was sneering. "Well she's _mine_." Sootpaw snorted in amusement.

"A she-cat _can't_ be yours. You can't own another cat." Molepaw narrowed his eyes.

"You know what I mean. Just leave her alone, okay?" Sootpaw rolled his eyes.

"What happened to you and my sister? You used to be the best of friends." Molepaw looked down, either embarrassed or ashamed.

"Things have changed."

"When did they change? I noticed it the day Gingerpaw arrived. You were tripping over your own feet to get close enough to her. Twigpaw was crushed, you know." Molepaw snorted.

"Yeah right. She'd never be into a cat like me. That's why I moved on. She's too good for me."

"She's only too good for you if you think she is." Molepaw grunted and looked over at Sootpaw, suddenly angry.

"Quit trying to make me like Twigpaw! I love Gingerpaw now, and there's nothing that will change that." He stalked away and Sootpaw caught up to the rest of the patrol to see why there was such a big interest in the evergreen.

"All I smell is ShadowClan on it!" Rosepetal's hiss was unusually hostile. Sootpaw knew a sweet, gentle, and kind Rosepetal, not a hostile one.

"Yes, but try to smell what's underneath the fresh markers. It's the smell of a rogue." Snowpaw snorted.

"Rosepetal has the best nose in all the Clans, so if she doesn't smell it, I doubt it's there." Brackenfur hissed.

"I know it isn't just ShadowClan scent!"

"Well it is, so let's just go back to camp." Rosepetal padded over to Sootpaw and walked back to camp with him while Brackenfur and Snowpaw argued over the bush.

"You trust me, right?" Her question startled Sootpaw.

"Of course." She seemed to relax after he answered and she purred. But then her carefree voice was replaced by a worried tone.

"Good, because I'm starting to think no one does. Brackenfur doesn't trust my sense of smell, Mousefur doesn't trust me to get all the thorns out of her bedding, and Bramblestar never lets me go out hunting alone. I don't know why, but no one trusts me!" Sootpaw pitied her. The whole Clan seemed to be treating her differently for no apparent reason.

"I still trust you," he purred. She rubbed her cheek against his.

"Thanks." The padded back to camp, their pelts almost touching.

When they got back to camp, Sootpaw looked around for Twigpaw. He was sorry about how harsh he was this morning. Then he remembered that she had left a little while ago.

He would miss his sister, but at least he had someone that understood him to talk to while she was gone.


	10. SandClan

Twigpaw limped along, trying not to hurt her paw any more than it already was. She had sprained it while she wasn't looking where she was going.

"You okay?" Gingerpaw had tried to become friends with Twigpaw on the journey, and Twigpaw tried really hard to like her.

"Yeah. I just slipped, that's all." Molepaw was padding alongside Gingerpaw, and his presence irritated Twigpaw. She didn't want to see or hear him ever again.

"Are you sure you're alright? Leafpool could put some herbs on it." Gingerpaw was trying to be helpful, but she was only annoying the tabby apprentice.

"I'm sure, but thanks for the concern." Twigpaw focused on the ground ahead of them as they walked along. She tried to ignore the lovey-dovey apprentices beside her, but apparently her irritation was shown on her face.

"Why can't you just be happy for us?" Molepaw meowed.

"Because ever since Gingerpaw came to ThunderClan, you've been treating me like a fox!" The large apprentice just looked at her.

"So?"

"You never used to! I actually thought we were friends! But it turns out that we weren't!"

"We _were_ until you made me look like a fool!"

"When did I make you look like a fool," Twigpaw hissed. "I never made you look like a fool!"

"Remember when I got stuck in the entrance to camp?" Twigpaw remembered when Squirrelflight had to apply herbs to his pelt to safely get him untangled.

"Yes."

"And you laughed at me. It made me feel… I hated you. You made a mockery out of me." Molepaw swatted a pile of leaves as they walked. Gingerpaw seemed uncomfortable, so she made an excuse to leave.

"I'll give you two some privacy," she mewed. The ginger cat quickened her pace to catch up with the rest of the patrol.

"I never meant to make you feel that way! Even _I _would've laughed if I got caught in the brambles!" Twigpaw was genuinely surprised that she had hurt him that bad.

"Well, you did." Molepaw looked away, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, Molepaw." He looked up at her, and for a second she saw the old Molepaw; sweet, sensitive, and understanding. But then his expression turned back to the cold and sheltered Molepaw that she knew now.

"Well I love Gingerpaw now, so there's nothing that you can say or do to ever win me back." Twigpaw stared at him, hurt and confused, as he ran away and caught up with his soon-to-be mate.

She stared at him, heartbroken. Was she really so stupid as to think that he'd choose her over Gingerpaw?

"Are you coming, Twigpaw?" Bramblestar was staring back at her.

"Yeah." She followed the leader as they caught up to the rest of the patrol and kept trying to find SandClan.

"There it is!" Pouncetail's yowl made Twigpaw jump. They'd all been traveling for a little over a day now, and Twigpaw was tired and thirsty. No one had seen any water for a while.

"Where?"

"I don't see it!"

"There! It's over there," Bramblestar yowled as he took the lead once again. The patrol followed their leader, kicking up sand as their paws thudded against the barren ground.

Bramblestar was the first to enter the camp, and the more senior warriors followed. Next came the newer warriors, and finally, the apprentices.

Twigpaw looked around the camp. The dens were holes dug into the ground, and there was a small hole in the center of camp. A couple things were thrown in it and covered in a thin layer of dust.

"Who are you?" A slender she-cat was standing atop a huge rock at the edge of the camp. She was slightly darker colored than the sand all around them, and her eyes blazed an icy blue.

Bramblestar dipped his head.

"We come from four Clans far away from here. Clans you may know." The she-cat just flicked her tail.

"Name them."

"Some of us are from ShadowClan," Tigerheart said as he puffed out his chest.

"And some of us are from RiverClan," Pouncetail mewed proudly.

"Don't forget that some of us are members of WindClan too!" Breezepelt had been annoying _everyone_ on the way there, and apparently he wanted to annoy SandClan, too.

"And the rest of us are from ThunderClan," Bramblestar rumbled.

"Well, nice to meet you all, but I don't think we can fit all of you in here…" There was a total of sixteen cats there. The other three Clans were all represented by three warriors and their leader. ThunderClan was the only Clan that was represented by three apprentices and their leader.

"We came to learn from you. One of my old friends visited me and said he had met you on the way here. He said that he recognized some of the cats here and that they looked like cats that had either died or left our Clans long ago." He looked around and then spotted a white she-cat that he had never known in his lifetime, but Bluestar had once knew very well.

"Snowfur!" The she-cat looked at him in bewilderment.

"My name is Snowbird, not Snowfur." Everyone else in the patrol began to look around and screech names too, but none of the SandClan cats were actually them.

"Spottedleaf!"

"Oakheart!"

"Reedwhisker!"

"Firestar!" All the cats in the clearing looked frightened now. Were they just seeing things, or were they actually there?

"STOP! I can assure you, we have never met any of you before," the she-cat leader yowled. "Quit this nonsense or leave!"

"We're sorry," Mistystar dipped her head. "We would like to learn the ways of your Clan. Learning is good where we come from."

The sand-colored cat looked down at her.

"Very well. My name is Sandstar."

"I am Bramblestar," the leader purred.

"Mistystar," the blue-grey she-cat meowed.

"Onestar." Apparently he was too good for Sandstar, because he couldn't even look at her.

"My name is Blackstar." The tom seemed happier than usual.

"Nice to meet all of you. Let's get to learning."


	11. Cherrypaw's Jealousy

"Congratulations on your apprenticeships, and I hope to see you all succeed in what you do." Cloudtail dismissed the Clan from the meeting with a flick of his tail.

Sootpaw looked around at the seemingly-empty camp, and remembered when he and Twigpaw were kits. They had bounced around the camp, greeting the elders and yielding for the warriors. He remembered when they had snuck into Firestar's den and Jayfeather had been so worried because apparently Firestar was sick.

He sighed, remembering that things had changed and that there was no time for small, joyful moments, nor was there time to remember them.

Cloudtail was sitting atop Highrock, staring down at Sootpaw. He suddenly felt eyes boring into his back, and he turned around to see who was staring at him.

The deputy jumped down from Highrock and bounded over to the small grey apprentice. He flicked his tail and then rested it on Sootpaw's shoulder.

"You look upset. What's wrong?" Cloudtail seemed completely unaware that Bramblestar had removed him from the SandClan patrol.

"I'm just upset that Bramblestar took me off the trip to SandClan so that Gingerpaw could go with Molepaw. I mean, why should she get to go and not me? I just feel so… left out. First, it was Twigpaw that was more special than me, and now it's Gingerpaw that's more important!" Cloudtail nodded and listened patiently while Sootpaw vented his feelings.

"Sootpaw, you are just as important to this Clan as everyone else, no matter what anyone says. Gingerpaw just needs to feel like she fits in here, because right now, she doesn't. That's why Bramblestar put her on the patrol instead of you." Sootpaw knew that Cloudtail's job was to make everyone feel important, not take sides. Sootpaw had always felt left out by everyone-except Thistleclaw. Thistleclaw made him feel needed.

"I hope I helped. Why don't you get something to eat and go have fun with the other apprentices? They're going to go to the stream soon, maybe you could join them," Cloudtail mewed. He walked away, not waiting for a response from the apprentice.

Sootpaw walked over to the fresh-kill pile and picked a scrawny starling off the top since he wasn't very hungry. Then he made his way over to where Cherrypaw, Snowpaw, and Bluepaw were eating and sat down with them.

"Hey Snowpaw! How's being an apprentice so far?" Sootpaw greeted the new apprentice with a smile.

"Amazing! The apprentice den is so much bigger than the nursery!" Bluepaw bit angrily into the vole she was eating, obviously upset at something.

"Hey, Bluepaw! Something wrong?" She looked up at him and her irritation vanished.

"No, nothing's wrong. Sit," she mewed, rubbing the ground next to her with her tail. He smiled at her and sat next to her.

"So I heard you three were going to the stream after you were finished eating. Mind if I join you?" The three apprentices looked at each other and then nodded.

"Sure," Cherrypaw chirped. "We don't mind!"

"The more the merrier!" Sootpaw finished off the starling in a few bites and waited for the other apprentices to finish their meals.

When Snowpaw, Bluepaw, and Cherrypaw finished their food, the four apprentices left the camp, promising Cloudtail they'd be careful, and headed for the stream.

Snowpaw jumped into the stream and sent water spraying out at the other cats.

"Hey!" Bluepaw jumped in after Snowpaw and splashed water at her. "You know you can't do that and get away with it," Bluepaw teased. Cherrypaw stuck her front paw into the water slowly and then yanked it out. She backed away from the water.

"Cherrypaw, what's wrong?" Sootpaw looked at the small apprentice backing away from the water.

"It's… so… _cold!_" Bluepaw laughed.

"Oh, come on, Cherrypaw! Just jump in and you'll be fine!" Cherrypaw looked unsure, and before she could back away any more, Sootpaw shoved her from behind. Cherrypaw yowled in fright as she flailed her legs and tried to keep herself from going into the water.

"Sootpaw!" Cherrypaw yowled his name right before she went into the stream head first.

Bluepaw, Snowpaw, and Sootpaw all started cracking up laughing. When Cerrypaw's head surfaced, the hair slicked to her head and her ears angled backwards in disgust and anger, she was NOT happy.

"Why would you do that, Sootpaw?" She clambered out of the stream and shivered as a gust of wind swept through the trees. "I'll be lucky if I don't catch whitecough!

She stormed away into the trees and back towards camp.

"Don't mind her, Sootpaw. She's always grouchy when we come down here," Snowpaw reassured him. Sootpaw jumped into the stream, shaking off whatever feelings of guilt he had for making Cherrypaw angry.

"I wonder why…" Sootpaw pondered the explanations for why she's always grouchy.

"Well, she's not grouchy _every_ time we're down here. It's only when we have a tom with us." Hmm… Sootpaw dismissed the subject with a flick of his tail.

The apprentices played in the stream until the sun was nearly set.

"Come on! We'd better get back to camp before the sun sets!" Snowpaw bounded away into the trees. Bluepaw and Sootpaw followed her scent back to camp and slipped back into the apprentices den.

Bluepaw curled up into her nest and Sootpaw curled up into the nest next to her since it was the only one left. She purred and twitched her tail. Soon, her breathing slowed and she was asleep. Sootpaw relaxed and fell asleep, too.


	12. Changing of a Mind Maybe

Twigpaw walked along miserably. The sun was blazing high in the sky, making her pelt feel like it was on fire. Water was much scarcer here than they had imagined, and many cats were ill from dehydration. The only time your thirst was quenched was when you ate, but the sensation quickly faded away.

Sand got stuck between Twigpaw's toes and began to irritate her, but without water she couldn't get it out right now. She'd just have to wait.

"So, what kinds of prey is out here?" Bramblestar's voice rasped as he looked around, obviously wondering what animal would want to live out here.

"Lizards, mostly. Sometimes we find a few snakes, a jackrabbit or two, but it's really a treat when we find a roadrunner," Sandstar explained. Then she stopped dead and sniffed the hot air. She dropped into a crouch and crept to the edge of a hole in the ground, sniffing.

"Wha-" Gingerpaw was cut off by a hiss as a large rabbit with huge ears bolted out of it's hole and ran. Sandstar was hot on it's tail when it got tired and slowed down slightly. She took the prey down with a paw and a swift death bite. She carried the prey back slowly, making it clear to Gingerpaw that she'd almost cost them all a jackrabbit.

"Don't ever talk while someone's stalking something," Sandstar hissed. "You think jackrabbits can't hear you?" Gingerpaw's face turned pink and she shut up. Molepaw licked her cheek for some reason, and Twigpaw turned away.

After hunting, the ThunderClan patrol settled down in the camp, and Blackstar took his warriors out with a SandClan warrior to learn the way they hunted. Molepaw was grooming Gingerpaw's pelt, and Twigpaw felt like she'd be intruding if she went over there. There was really no other choice, though, since Bramblestar was busy.

Twigpaw sat down with Gingerpaw and Molepaw. Molepaw gave her a look that told her she was intruding, but Gingerpaw greeted her warmly.

"Hello, Twigpaw!" Twigpaw smiled at Gingerpaw's efforts.

"Hey, Gingerpaw. Hey Molepaw," She smiled at them both, but Molepaw didn't return the smile or say hello back. "How was hunting earlier? I kinda liked it, but I got really hot out in the sun."

"I got really hot too, and I got sand between my toes!" I nodded and told her I got sand in my toes too. We shared tongues for a while as Molepaw just kept grooming Gingerpaw.

"Molepaw, why don't you quit grooming and talk with us?" Gingerpaw looked at him with round eyes and he gave in. We started talking about how much we missed everyone back home and what might be happening right now.

"I think Sootpaw might be throwing a tantrum right now!" Twigpaw laughed, and so did Gingerpaw and Molepaw. He always had something to complain about.

"Twigpaw, this might be a sensitive subject for you, but what happened to your leg?" Gingerpaw looked like she actually cared and didn't want to make fun of Twigpaw, so she told her that she was born with only three legs, so it didn't hurt. She also asked if it was hard walking and hunting with only three legs, and the tabby apprentice told her that she grew up like this, so it wasn't that hard.

"Wow. That's amazing," Gingerpaw breathed. Twigpaw noticed Molepaw staring at her, and she felt a little uncomfortable. He shook his head and then looked away, as if getting rid of any thoughts or worries.

"Yeah, well Twigpaw's a strong cat. She's capable of anything." Molepaw was looking at Twigpaw warmly, but then looked away before Gingerpaw could see it.

"Thanks Molepaw." The tabby cat blushed, happy that her crush was finally not being hostile with her. The sun was beginning to set though, so Twigpaw smiled at both of them and left politely.

The desert was a strange, bipolar place. It was scorching during the day, but freezing at night. Twigpaw settled down in a bed of wiry feathers and dry, bristly plants. She shivered and tried to get some sleep, but ended up staring at the stars while the camp fell silent around her. Eventually, thoughts of home sent her to a shallow, restless sleep.

_Sootpaw raced over to greet his three-legged sister._

"_Twigpaw! It's so great to see you! Why are you here? Did Thistleclaw recruit you too?" Sootpaw's grin stretched from ear to ear and his whiskers twitched happily. "Now we can train together!"_

"_Thistleclaw? Recruit me? What in the world are you talking about?" Her brother's ears drooped._

"_You mean, he _didn't _recruit you?" Twigpaw shook her head._

"_No."_

"_Then you're a chosen one!" He jumped with joy. "Just like me!"_

"_Sootpaw, what in StarClan's name are you talking about?" He ignored her and tried to lead her to Thistleclaw to share the great news, but she refused to follow until he gave an explanation._

"_This is the Dark Forest, and Thistleclaw leads it with Tigerstar. Together, they train apprentices and warriors of the four Clans how to be the best warriors they can be. It's really fun, but kinda tough sometimes." Twigpaw couldn't believe what she was hearing._

"_Sootpaw, this is The Place of No Stars-you shouldn't be here!" He flattened his ears to his head and glared at his sister._

"_Who are you to tell me where I should and shouldn't go when I dream? They're my dreams, not yours."_

"_But Sootpaw, you'll get yourself into trouble. Remember the stories our mother told us when we were kits? Tigerstar is evil, and if Thistleclaw's here, then he must be too." Her brother rolled his eyes._

"_Twigpaw, they were just stories. Our mother never met Tigerstar, so she doesn't know him." Twigpaw flicked her tail in annoyance. Why wasn't he listening to her?_

"_But the stories were passed down by older cats that _were _alive when Tigerstar was." Sootpaw still wasn't convinced, but he dropped the Tigerstar subject._

"_Then what about Thistleclaw? Why aren't there any stories about him?" He looked smug-like he may have won the whole argument._

"_His stories must've just been lost. I'm sure there's one about him. Perhaps ask Graystripe; he and Firestar were very good friends with Bluestar, and she was alive when Thistleclaw was alive." Sootpaw hissed and turned to walk away._

_Suddenly, Twigpaw's vision blurred and she felt tiny claws tearing at her flesh. Yowls of pain escaped her lips and echoed into the forest. Twigpaw looked around for her attacker, but there wasn't one to be found. Yet the tearing, ripping, and biting continued until she passed out…_


	13. Blossoming

Moons had passed since the SandClan patrol had returned. It seemed that none of them were old ancestors and that what Ravenpaw had seen was just a trick of the mind. So the Clans were back to their old ways of rivalry.

"Sootheart? Do you want to go hunting with me?" Bluesong was standing at the fresh-kill pile, examining the old, dry prey.

"Sure." He bounded over to his friend and they left the camp. "Where do you want to hunt?"

"Sky Oak?" Sootheart nodded and followed the she-cat to the old tree where Longtail and Mousefur were buried.

They sniffed around for some while and caught a couple shrews and brought them back to camp to eat.

When they entered the camp, Gingerpaw and Molepelt were sharing tongues and Twigfall was looking at the two sadly. Sootheart felt sorry for his sister. She'd liked Molepelt since day one and then some kittypet joins the Clan and she gets tossed aside like a piece of crow-food.

Bluehsong greeted Cherryfrost warmly and sat down beside her to eat, and Sootheart did the same.

"So how was vigil last night?" Cherryfrost's eyes lit up.

"Brackenfur found two young ShadowClan apprentices on our territory climbing trees. They'd just gotten lost and didn't realize they were on our territory, I suppose. Cloudtail, Brackenfur, and Berrynose escorted them back to their territory and warned them to stay off. It was exciting!" Cherryfrost was a rambler sometimes…

"Mind if I join you?" Rosepetal mumbled through a mouse. Sootheart shook his head and patted the ground next to him with his tail. She sat down and devoured her prey.

The sun began to dip below the horizon and the elders slunk from their sunning spots outside their den into the warmth of their nests. The kits went inside and the queens hushed them until the camp fell eerily silent.

Without a word, the four warriors made their way into their nests and fell asleep.

"_Finally! Where have you been?" Thistleclaw pinned Sootheart to the ground._

"_Living," he snarled. "In the real world, not this wretched dream place." Sootheart flung the brown warrior off him. A moon ago he wouldn't have been able to do that, but now Thistleclaw was much thinner and weaker._

"_So who are you loyal to-us or them?" Sootheart had been asked a question like this before and always thought he could have both, but now he realized that he couldn't._

_As he turned to run toward the bright white light he'd come to realize led to a deep sleep-a way to escape the Dark Forest when you didn't want to be there-he yowled back at Thistleclaw._

"_I will always be loyal to ThunderClan!" And with that he took off into the trees, racing toward the bright light. He heard thundering paw steps of probably a dozen cats pursuing him. They got louder until Sootheart was convinced they were only a tail length behind him._

_Just as the pursuers were about to tackle him, he lunged forward and slipped into a deep, restless sleep._

"Sootheart…" Sootheart opened his eyes to see Rosepetal looking at him drowsily. "You've been kicking me in your sleep." She could barely keep her eyes open.

"Sorry." Rosepetal smiled.

"Bad dream?" Sootheart wondered whether he should tell her or not.

"Yeah. It's reoccurring too. Even though I really don't want to go there every night, I just wake up there." Rosepetal's eyes shone with worry.

"What kind of a place do you go to?" She sat up slightly and leaned closer so they could talk without waking other cats.

"It's really dark and gloomy. Thistleclaw calls it the Dark Forest…" Rosepetal gasped and looked around to be sure no one else had heard. Then she looked at Sootheart again.

"Meet me in the training hollow." She got up as silent as a mouse and slipped out of the den. Sootheart followed her.

"Can't sleep?" Blossomfall mewed as they slipped out into the forest.

"Yeah, something like that."

The two warriors sat down in the training hollow and were silent for several heartbeats. Then Rosepetal spoke.

"You've been visiting the Dark Forest?" She hissed at him.

"I just woke up there as an apprentice, but a moon ago when I last saw the forest I never wanted to go back. Then I just awoke there, I didn't choose to." Rosepetal looked away in disappointment.

"I thought you were a good cat."

"I am a good cat! I fled the Dark Forest, and right before I did I promised I'd always be loyal to ThunderClan. I'm never going back there, I promise you, Rosepetal." His eyes shone in the moonlight and Rosepetal met them steadily.

"I'm not the one you need to promise. You need to promise ThunderClan-you need to promise yourself." Sootheart nodded.

"I do promise ThunderClan, and I do promise myself." He pressed his nose to Rosepetal's cheek. "And I don't break my promises." She purred and touched her nose to Sootheart's muzzle.

"I know you don't." The two cats sat in silence, holding each other's gaze for what seemed like moons. Finally, the rising sun jolted them both back into reality.

"We'd better be getting back." Rosepetal got up and began to pad away, but Sootheart stopped her.

"Shouldn't we at least bring something back to show for the time we spent out here?" Rosepetal smiled and padded back over to him. Her pelt gently brushed his.

"Ok. I'll meet you back at camp. I'm going head toward Snakerocks." Sootheart's heart skipped a beat. The thought of Rosepetal going there all alone scared him.

"Mind if I come with you?" She smiled.

"Sure," she purred. The two cats headed off toward the rocks, their fur barely touching.


	14. The Forbidden Meeting

Twigfall sniffed at a bush near the ShadowClan border and recognized the scent of a cat from a memory long ago. Then she remembered it. The scent belonged to the pair of green eyes she'd seen peering at her through the undergrowth when she was just barely an apprentice.

Then she spotted them-the eyes she'd spotted that day.

"Who are you and why are you so close to the border?" The eyes blinked at her and then rose-the cat was standing up.

"I could ask you the same thing," the dark cat murmured. Twigfall hissed.

"I'm not going to play these games with you! Who are you?" The cat slipped out of the bushes and faced her. He was tall and lean, and his fur was black as night. His muscles rippled beneath his pelt, making Twigfall shiver, yet something was oddly inviting about him.

"Nighthawk. I'm new to ShadowClan; well, I was when I first saw you." He took a step forward and Twigfall took a step back. "So who are you?"

"Twigfall." He smiled.

"Nice name. I like it." He stared into her eyes, his gaze unwavering. Then he heard a rustle in the bushes. "I need to see you later. Please meet me here at moonhigh." Twigtail gave him a look telling him he was nuts. "Please."

His pelt disappeared into the trees just as Molepelt jumped out of the bushes.

"Hey Twigfall." He smiled. The tabby warrior smiled back.

"Hey Molepelt. Nice to see you. It's been so long since we've talked civilly." She purred. Molepelt looked down at his paws and his ears flattened back onto his head.

"Listen, I know you've liked me, and I used to like you, but I have Gingerpaw now," his voice cracked with sorrow. "I'm sorry, Twigfall, but I just can't leave her. I just wanted you to know exactly where we stand so you can move on." Twigfall flattened her ears to her head and hissed.

"I already know you love Gingerpaw, you mouse-brain! I've been moving on. Not everyone obsesses about you," she snapped.

"Fine, be that way!" Molepelt turned his back on her and left. She didn't feel bad at all for the way she reacted-he deserved to be yelled at.

When she looked back into the bushes where Nighthawk had disappeared to, she saw a flash of green eyes and then pure darkness.

Sootheart laid in the sun with Rosepetal, sharing tongues. Twigfall saw the sparkle in her brother's eye and the way she returned it with the same passion. The brown warrior knew that Rosepetal would be having kits soon-she just knew it.

Molepelt congratulated Gingerfern on her warriorship near the nursery. Twigfall just barely overheard him saying to her that soon they'd have kits of their own running around the camp.

What was with everyone and kits? Granted, it was the beginning of newleaf, the perfect time to have kits.

Before she knew it, everyone was moving out of the clearing and heading to their dens. Twigfall followed, not forgetting her meeting tonight. Was she actually going to meet him there?

The whole camp fell silent, and Twigfall felt it was time to go. By the time she'd get to the border she'd probably already be late.

She stepped out of the den and snuck over to the dirt place tunnel. Quietly, she slipped through and slunk into the undergrowth to wait.

Finally, Brightheart and Mousewhisker looked away, giving the warrior enough time to get out of their sight. She bounded toward the border, being careful not to make too much noise.

When she got there, the pair of eyes was nowhere to be found. She looked everywhere, yet she couldn't find them.

Eventually she saw something flash in the corner of her eye. It was him!

He stepped out of the cover of the trees and padded over to join her. His nose touched her muzzle gently.

"I'm so happy you came," he purred. Twigfall couldn't resist the urge to purr and let it escape her throat. "I wanted to get to know you a bit better."

"So what do you want to know," she whispered as he pulled away.

"I don't know. Just tell me about yourself." She smiled and began to think.

"Well, I'll start with my kithood. I was born with only three legs," she saw his gaze flash down and open wide with shock. "You surely can't tell me you didn't notice before."

"I really didn't." He was the first cat who hadn't obsessed over her missing leg-he hadn't even noticed it.

"Well, my mother was Cinderheart." Nighthawk tilted his head to one side.

"The one who took Breezepelt over the edge of the cliff?" Twigfall nodded and tears brimmed at the edge of her eyes. "I'm sorry." He pressed his muzzle to her cheek. "Go on."

She continued on to tell him about her brother and how he was falling in love with Rosepetal and about the new warriors.

"Our Clan has more warriors than ever. I think we should do pretty good this leaf-bare." She told Nighthawk all about her successes and her losses before she realized the moon was beginning to fall and dawn would come before too long.

"Sorry, I suppose I should let you speak." She blushed and saw his eyes searching hers.

"Well…" They talked for a long time until Twigfall noticed the sky beginning to gray. She really needed to go.

"I'm sorry, but I have to get back to camp."

"Ok. Can we meet some other time?" Twigfall purred, and Nighthawk's eyes flashed with relief.

"Of course. But I can't discuss that right now. Maybe if we meet at a gathering or something we can talk about it then." With that, she touched her nose to his cheek and bounded away, every ounce of her body wishing to stay.


	15. Once And For All

"Congratulations, Molepelt!" Every cat in the Clan-besides Twigfall-was congratulating Molepelt on the kits Gingerfern's belly was swollen with.

"Soon, they'll all be congratulating you," Rosepetal purred into Sootheart's ear. He nuzzled his mate affectionately and shivered, feeling hot under someone's gaze. He looked up just in time to see Bluesong's gaze flick away from him and on to another cat.

A few sunrises ago, Rosepetal had told Sootheart that she thought she may be expecting kits. He couldn't really tell since her belly hadn't swollen much, but now that he'd told her, he could notice. Soon the other she-cats would notice and then the news would spread around the camp like wildfire.

"Twigfall, aren't you going to congratulate me?" Molepelt was over harassing Sootheart's sister when he looked up.

"Fine. Congratulations on blah blah blah," she meowed in a monotone voice. The disgruntled tom barred his teeth.

"Even though things didn't work out between us doesn't mean you can't be happy for me!" Twigfall hissed and arched her back at him.

"I am happy for you! Just less happy than if it'd been me!"

"If what had been you?" Molepelt challenged. Twigfall met his harsh gaze unwaveringly and then spoke in a clear, heartless voice.

"The mother." The whole camp fell silent and shocked gazes flicked around to one another. "Yeah, I said it. I'd have loved to be the mother of those kits." Clearly Molepelt was shocked that she'd actually said it in the middle of the camp.

"Happy now?" Twigfall, mad as could be, limped out of camp, tears brimming in her eyes.

Molepelt was hot under the gaze of the whole Clan, and so he pushed back into the nursery to visit Gingerfern.

"I feel so bad for Twigfall," Rosepetal muttered. "Her heart was broken in two by that fox-heart." Sootheart pressed closer to his love. Something about her comforted him and told him that Twigfall would be okay in time.

"I know where she's coming from. I had my heart broken by a tom, too. I didn't even know it until I saw him hanging around with Rosepetal all the time." Sootheart barely picked up Bluesong's words to Cherryfrost from across the clearing. She was looking right at him with a hurt and grief-stricken gaze. At that very moment he knew he wasn't any better to his old friend than Molepelt was to his sister.

"And now she's expecting his kits." She looked away and shouldered her way into the warriors' den.

Other cats must've heard Bluesong's comment because their clanmates began to come up to Rosepetal and Sootheart to congratulate them both.

"You're going to love having kits. They may be pains for a while, but once you see them grow into fine young cats, you know that all your hard work has paid off." Squirrelflight's gaze darted to Lionblaze, who was getting ready to go on the sunhigh patrol, and Jayfeather, who was organizing herbs. Even though they weren't her own, she had raised them as if they were.

"Just like your father was always proud of you," his great-aunt whispered in Sootheart's ear. She smiled and then walked away, letting other cats have their chance to congratulate the two of them.

Bramblestar bounded over to Rosepetal, smiling.

"Congratulations on the kits. Rosepetal, I'd like you to move into the Nursery," he mewed. "Sootheart, get another cat to help you gather some supplies to make her a nest. You can get the moss from Jayfeather, but the bracken you'll need to gather from the forest."

Sootheart licked his mate on the cheek and went out to find his sister.

She wasn't very far away. He found Twigfall in the training hollow, staring at the sky.

"Twigfall? You okay?" His sister didn't reply for several heartbeats, but then she turned and looked at Sootheart.

"Yeah."

"Can you help me gather some bracken for Rosepetal? She's moving into the Nursery and she needs a nest." Twigfall's eyes lit up and she ran over to her brother.

"Oh, congratulations, Sootheart!" He smiled.

"Thanks." The two warriors gathered enough bracken to have leftovers for the next cat who needed new bracken for their nest. Together they arranged Rosepetal's nest.

"Goodnight, Sootheart." Twigfall went to the warriors' den and slipped inside while Sootheart laid his tail on Rosepetal's shoulder.

"I'll see you in the morning." He licked her forehead and went to his nest to sleep.

"_Sootheart!" Thistleclaw's voice filled the gray warrior's head with fear. "How could you disgrace the Dark Forest this way? Kits will only distract you!"_

_Sootheart spun to face his former secret mentor._

"_I no longer am one of you! I belong to ThunderClan, not the Dark Forest! How many times must I tell you this? Don't you think you should find another cat to take my place rather than waste your time trying to get me to stay here with you?" Thistleclaw narrowed his eyes._

"_Fine. But just know, when the time of the Dark Forest comes, we will rise without you. And then you'll regret your choice." Thistleclaw left him to the dark that engulfed Sootheart, freeing him of the Dark Forest's grip once and for all._


	16. Twigfall's Decision

She woke with an ache in her chest-something she'd never felt before. Twigfall directly linked it to the absence of Nighthawk.

With a groan, she rose and padded out into the late morning sunshine and looked around the camp.

Molepelt was bringing Gingerfern fresh moss, and Sootheart was sharing tongues with Rosepetal outside the nursery. Bluesong whispered something into Snowbird's ear and nodded toward Bumblestripe cooing over his new kits playing in the dust. Dustpelt grumbled as he tried to make his way past them to the medicine den.

"Hey Twigfall!" Sedgekit pounced on the warrior's tail and batted at it with sheathed paws. It was very odd that a kit as young as her knew to keep her claws sheathed.

"Hey Sedgekit," she purred. The little kit was adorable.

"Why don't you have any kits?" Twigfall turned and looked at the kit harshly.

"Because I don't want any!" Sedgekit flinched but didn't back down. "I'm sorry," Twigfall mewed. "I just don't feel that strongly toward any tom."

"_In ThunderClan,"_ she thought.

"Oh. Well when you do I want to be the first to know!" Sedgekit rubbed the side of her face on Twigfall's leg and bounded away to where her father Bumblestripe was looking for her anxiously.

Twigfall left camp and crept through the undergrowth. When she came close enough to the border with ShadowClan that she could see the trees on the other side, she began to romp through the bracken loudly.

She was disappointed when Nighthawk didn't come out of hiding. Maybe he wasn't there at all.

Disgruntled, she thought she might hunt here for a while and see if he came along.

"_Wait, I scared away all the prey…"_ She wasn't ready to leave though, so she hid in the undergrowth and waited for a long time…

But he never came. She never saw the green eyes, the black pelt, or his soft breathing that rustled in the bushes.

Then she heard it. The soft thudding of pawsteps. Twigfall huddled even farther into the undergrowth. If it was a patrol, her hiding here might be suspicious.

It didn't sound like a patrol, though. Twigfall heard the crunch of dried out leaves and pine needles underpaw. A black tail flicked out into the sunshine and then disappeared back into the darkness.

Hope fluttered in Twigfall's chest. Was it him? Green eyes blinked at her from the border. It was him!

She stood up and waved her tail at him. His eyes brightened and the black cat rose. He beckoned for her to join him on the other side of the border. For a moment she hesitated, but then decided that it was worth the risk. Sunhigh patrol wouldn't be out for a while and the dawn patrol had just gotten back into camp.

"I missed you," she purred into Nighthawk's warm neck fur.

"I missed you too…" There was some sort of uneasiness in his tone that made Twigfall look up into his eyes.

"Is something wrong?" The dark tom stared into her eyes as if he could never look away.

"Well, I just have this sickening feeling whenever we meet here." He shuffled his paws. "It doesn't feel right." Twigfall gasped.

"So, you don't like me anymore?" His eyes widened in shock and fright.

"No! Of course I do! I love you!" The ThunderClan warrior purred.

"You do? You love me?" Nighthawk's gaze softened and he touched his nose to hers.

"Absolutely."

"I love you too," Twigfall whispered. Her new mate licked her muzzle affectionately.

"But we can't be together. Not like this." He looked around. "I'm always afraid we're going to get caught. And if we do," he looked into Twigfall's warm hazel eyes, "I'll be watched very closely and won't get to see you again."

"Don't worry; we won't get caught." Twigfall nuzzled Nighthawk to reassure him that they really wouldn't get caught.

"Well I've been thinking…" The muscular black tom touched the small warrior's flank with his tail.

"And…?" Twigfall pressed closer to Nighthawk.

"I want you to join ShadowClan so we can be together." Twigfall gasped so loudly she was surprised the cats back at the ThunderClan camp didn't hear her.

"What!" Nighthawk stepped back.

"Or I could join ThunderClan…? I understand that they mean a lot to you-you were born there. I wasn't born in ShadowClan, so I wouldn't mind leaving them for you." His eyes pleaded with the young she-cat. He really did love her.

"I can't ask you to leave your Clan for me…"

"No, you aren't asking me to. I'm offering." Sorrow and hope edged his mew as he pleaded with his love.

"I still can't let you do that…" Twigfall looked away as she thought about what she could do. She didn't want to give him up, but she couldn't let him leave his Clan.

"Oh please, Twigfall? I love you so much, but I just can't go on hiding my love for you. I just can't." Nighthawk pressed closer and hugged her tightly. Then Twigfall spoke up in a small voice.

"I'll leave ThunderClan."


	17. Secrets

Sootheart leaned into Rosepetal as he fully absorbed the shock of the news he'd just heard. His sister? Leaving ThunderClan for ShadowClan? How could she?

"Sootheart, there's nothing you could've done to stop her." Rosepetal murmured in his ear. Her breath was extremely hot and her breathing shallow.

"Shh… You need to rest. You need to get better." Rosepetal had gotten whitecough a sunrise ago. It really worried Sootheart-not only for the safety of her, but for the safety of their kits.

"Sootheart, go hunt or take a walk and clear your mind. I'll watch Rosepetal," Jayfeather meowed. His eyes were dark-he had not taken the news well.

"Thanks, Jayfeather." The dark gray tom rose to his paws and exited the medicine den. When he got out into the clearing, he began to look for Twigfall to talk to her.

Then he remembered with a pang that she wasn't there anymore.

"Need someone to talk to?" Sootheart whipped around and saw Bluesong looking at him.

"Yeah. I really miss her." She nodded.

"I know. It's hard to miss other cats. I miss the closeness I used to share with one." Sootheart tipped his head to one side.

"Who?" Bluesong shuffled her paws and then looked up at the tom. Her eyes betrayed the emotions her body was so desperately trying to hide.

"You. I thought we'd be together… But clearly you had other thoughts…" For the first time, Sootheart knew why Bluesong had been so cold to him lately. Why she never talked to him anymore or why she dreaded going on patrols with him. He never knew he'd hurt her this way.

"Bluesong, I had no idea-"

"Of course you didn't. I was foolish. I never gave you the signs or anything, so really it's my fault." Sorrow edged her voice as she dug her claws into the earth.

"I never meant to hurt you. I'm really sorry." Bluesong looked up at Sootheart.

"No worries. Anyway, did you want to talk about Twigfall?" Sootheart shook his head. All along he'd thought he liked Bluesong but never made his move. Instead he'd settled for Rosepetal and now he discovered he actually could've had a shot with the cat he had liked since he was an apprentice. Heartbreaking.

But he loved Rosepetal now. More so than he would ever love any cat. She meant the world to him.

Sootheart pushed into the medicine den and laid down beside Rosepetal. He laid his tail over her swollen belly and huddled as close to her as he could.

"I'll leave you two in peace." He hadn't even noticed Spiderleg beside Rosepetal when he came in.

Spiderleg and Daisy had had a recent falling out when Daisy accused her mate of not caring about her or their kits.

"So you're so involved with your warrior duties that you can't even find time to spend with your children or me?" Daisy had yowled at Spiderleg..

"They're warriors now! They don't need you or I with them all the time," Spiderleg hissed.

"Even though they are warriors now doesn't mean they wouldn't appreciate talking to you every once in a while!" Daisy's fur bristled along her spine and she arched her back.

"Oh come on, do you think they like being smothered by you all the time?" Spiderleg ranted about how she was always so devoted to the kits to ever spend time with him anymore.

"You know what, we're through." Daisy had stormed away and left Spiderleg alone, anxious eyes blazing across his pelt.

The father left Sootheart with Rosepetal.

"Rosepetal, you can pull through. I know you can." Sootheart shared tongues with her all night and all the nest day. She seemed to be getting better as time went on, and Jayfeather said she might be healthy by the time her kits come to make the kitting process easier on her.

"I don't know what you did or how you did it, but it worked," Jayfeather said to his son after he said that Rosepetal was free to move back into the nursery.

No sooner than she had got there, Rosepetal collapsed and complained of a great pain in her lower stomach. Sootheart rushed to find Jayfeather.

"I don't know, she just said her stomach hurt really bad," the gray tom mewed anxiously as Jayfeather gathered some herbs and squeezed out of the den. The medicine cat hustled into the nursery, and Sootheart followed him.

"Eat these." Jayfeather coaxed Rosepetal into swallowing the herbs. She laid her head back down and let her parched tongue flop out of her mouth. "Get her some moss soaked in water."

Sootheart nodded and raced into the forest. He collected the most lush, fresh clumps of moss he could find and drenched them in the stream. He ran back to camp, trying to shake as little water as possible from the moss.

Rosepetal lapped at the moss gratefully when her mate dropped it beside her head.

"How long will it be?" Jayfeather looked up at his son and then back at his patient.

"At least until moonhigh, considering she hasn't had kits before and she's having four," he meowed as he pressed his paw gently to her belly. Little paws prodded at their mother's side from the inside. "I'll let you know when they are coming. Go eat and rest for a little while."

Sootheart tried, but he couldn't rest. Finally, Jayfeather called out into the clearing.

"Sootheart, the kits are coming."


	18. Joining ShadowClan

Twigfall padded wearily into her new home, her fur bristling as she crossed the border. Even though she was joining this new Clan, setting paw on their territory felt wrong-so, so wrong.

"It's alright, Twigfall. As long as you're with me, you're safe," Nighthawk mewed into her ear. She pressed as close to him as possible, letting his scent wreath around her and fill her nostrils.

Then they reached the camp. Nighthawk peered in first and then signaled for Twigfall to follow him as he squeezed through the entrance into the camp.

Gasps and hisses erupted from all around as they smelled ThunderClan scent clinging strongly to Twigfall's pelt.

"What is _she_ doing here?"

"That cat doesn't belong here! It's ThunderClan!"

"Get her out!"

Twigfall suddenly didn't feel so good. Maybe this was the wrong thing to do. Maybe she should just go back home…

No. She'd be strong. She wanted to be here and she didn't care if every cat in the forest disagreed with her decision. At least she was still loyal to StarClan. Did they think she made the wrong choice too…?

"Nighthawk!" Blackstar stood in the middle of the clearing, his pelt bristling as his eyes flicked across Nighthawk and Twigfall's pelts. "What are you doing?"

"May I speak to you in your den?" Nighthawk didn't flinch as Blackstar let out a bought of laughter.

"As if! Now tell me, what is she doing here?" The black tom stood in front of Twigfall protectively.

"She wishes to join ShadowClan." Blackstar's eyes lit up with amusement as he breathed in the she-cat's scent.

"A ThunderClan cat? Joining ShadowClan?" Blackstar turned away and flicked his tail, signaling for Nighthawk to escort Twigfall off of their territory and back to her own Clan.

"Please, Blackstar. Give her a chance." The ShadowClan leader spun around and inspected the tabby warrior thoroughly. He made note of her missing leg, her softer pads, and the color of her pelt.

"First of all, she's missing a leg. Second, her pads are too soft for the pine needles in our territory. And look at her pelt! Do you honestly think the prey won't spot her white fur from five tail-lengths away?" Nighthawk stood his ground.

"She has worked around her missing leg and she was great hunter in her old Clan," he meowed. His voice was steady and defensive. "And in time her pads will harden."

Blackstar grew annoyed and after realizing that he would lose one of ShadowClan's strongest warriors if he didn't allow Twigfall to stay, he sighed and jumped onto the lowest bough of a pine tree that hung over the camp..

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here for a Clan meeting!" The whole of ShadowClan was already gathered, so there was no need to say the traditional gathering call. "This cat," Nighthawk nudged Twigfall forward into an empty space in front of the pine tree, "wishes to leave ThunderClan and join ShadowClan. I know this is highly frowned upon, but I've decided to give her a shot."

Annoyed and angry hisses echoed around the camp.

Blackstar didn't even end the meeting. Instead he just went to his den and disappeared inside.

"Come on," Nighthawk whispered in his mate's ear and led her into the Warrior's den. The sun was setting and soon the night would be completely upon them.

"Since it's late already, I'll let you share my nest for tonight. In the morning I'll make you one next to mine." He rearranged the bramble and moss to allow both cats to sleep in the nest.

Twigfall curled up in the nest and Nighthawk pressed in beside her. The she-cat waited until her mate's breaths grew slower and more even before she stared up at the roof of the den, praying that StarClan could still hear her thoughts to them.

_Did I make a horrible mistake? My Clan loved me; I had a great future with them. But I blew it. Even if I decide to go back now, they will never trust me or see me the same. _Twigfall pleaded silently with StarClan to give her answers, but deep in her heart she knew that her ancestors would leave her to find the answers herself.

She lay awake for a long time before falling asleep.

_Twigfall woke in a clearing, dew glittering like stars on the grass. She looked around and saw a cat padding towards her. She recognized the gray-furred she-cat as her mother._

"_Cinderheart!" She rushed forward to give the cat a lick on the ears. "I've missed you!" Her mother returned the affectionate licks and then sat down._

"_Twigfall, you have left your Clan to ruins. You had a great destiny! All your life, I knew of this. Jayfeather told me what you were to be," she mewed._

"_What?" Twigfall couldn't believe her ears._

"The cloud will drift away, and night will bar the bramble's path. A twig will rise to power, unless crushed by the love of a hawk._" Twigfall knew she must be the twig, or she would not be hearing of the prophecy, but who were the cloud, night, bramble, and hawk?_

"_What in StarClan's name is that supposed to mean?" Cinderheart's eyes suddenly grew cold and urgency edged her mew._

"_You must escape-" The gray she-cat's sentence was cut off my a hiss from Bluestar who had appeared across the clearing. Cinderheart gave a last look at her daughter before bounding away to join the old ThunderClan leader._

"_Wait! Escape what!" Twigfall's mews faded away into emptiness as the vision of the meadow slid away._


	19. The Sign

Sootheart looked adoringly at the four new bundles of joy suckling at Rosepetal. He couldn't resist the purr that rose in his throat.

"They're beautiful," he whispered.

"What are you going to name them?" Sootheart hadn't even noticed Jayfeather enter the Nursery. The tom was staring at the kits, perhaps feeling a sense of pride and happiness that he had gotten to welcome his grandkits into the world.

"This one," Rosepetal pointed to a very dark brown tom with black spots so subtle you could barely see them, "is Nightkit-after my father. This little one is named Willowpaw." A light gray she-kit suckled at her mother's belly, kneading the soft skin with her tiny paws.

Rosepetal looked up at her mate with warm, loving eyes. "You can name the other two."

Sootheart took a long look at the two kits-a tom and a she-kit. Finally he came up with two names.

"She's named Twigkit," the resemblance between Twigkit and his sister was uncanny-besides the fact that his kit had all four legs, "and his name is Eaglekit."

"He'll be a strong one," Jayfeather admired the name Sootheart had chosen for the tom, "and she will be gentle," Sootheart observed Twigkit suckling softly-Jayfeather was right. Yet something about her seemed… wrong.

"Twigkit?" Sootheart nudged her. She had stopped suckling and was lying on the floor, still as stone.

The father grew frantic and began to lick the kit against the lie of her fur before Jayfeather pushed him away and held his head close to the kit's body.

The medicine cat retrieved some herbs and coaxed them down Twigkit's throat with his paw. He tried everything Sootheart would have thought to try and more, but finally he looked up and shook his head.

"There is nothing we can do for her now-" Sootheart's grief-stricken cry rang out into the clearing and into the forest. Somewhere in a camp nearby, his sister heard the agonized wail and felt sorrow for the cat who sounded so distressed.

"No! There has to be something!" Sootheart muzzled the kit as the rest of his clanmates gathered around and peeked heads in through the entrance. The gray tom could tell by the low wails and the soft voices that the news was traveling fast.

"I'm sorry, Sootheart. StarClan has taken her-I cannot get her back." He laid his tail over his son's shoulders. "I know Cinderheart will take good care of her." At the mention of his mother's name, Sootheart moaned out, realizing he had lost his mother and kit to StarClan and his sister to ShadowClan. Why must everyone take his family from him?

Sootheart laid down beside his mate and she soothed him. Soon he was calmed down-thanks to the herbs Jayfeather gave him-and left to join his clanmates in the warriors' den.

"I'm sorry," the cats seemed to take turns apologizing for something beyond their control, and after a while Sootheart only heard murmurs that blurred and rushed together. He no longer heard individual cats, but a whole Clan of cats. His clanmates had stars in their fur and they began to take on the shapes of old ThunderClan cats. Bluestar, Lionheart, Whitestorm, Redtail, and many more.

Then the cats faded and somewhere inside Sootheart he felt peace. Peace for his mother's death and the passing of his kit.

Before he knew it, his eyes shut and darkness slammed into his eyes, but only for a moment.

"_Sootheart!" A warm purr made the gray cat open his eyes and look around. Stars danced in the grass and a gray she-cat sauntered toward him._

"_Cinderheart!" He greeted his mother affectionately. She returned his purr and then suddenly grew very serious._

"_That was a sign!" Cinderheart's eyes stared into her son's, begging him to understand what she meant. Of course he didn't, though._

"_What? What was a sign?"_

"_Twigkit's passing! You must save-" A yowl cut the former ThunderClan warrior off. Bluestar stood at the top of a ridge, staring down at Cinderheart angrily._

"_You have told him enough!" Cinderheart looked at Bluestar with pleading eyes._

"_Please? I can't just sit back and know that my kit has died because I provided her brother with too little information!" Sootheart was confused. As the she-cats bickered, he began to put two-and two together. Twigkit's death, Cinderheart's kit dying… Twigfall! Twigfall was in trouble!_

_Sootheart laid down and begged sleep to come so he could find out what had happened to his sister._

_But it wouldn't come. Desperately, Sootheart sung a lullaby from his childhood in his head, but still nothing worked._

_Finally, after what had seemed like moons had passed, sleep overcame the gray tom._


	20. We're Off to See the Leader

OMG, I am sooooooooooooo sorry, you guys! I abandoned you all! I never meant to, I'm so sorry! I know it's no excuse, but homework from my honors classes, volleyball every day after school, and three-hour marching band rehearsals three days a week really took it's toll on me. I added the last chapters all at once, because I just completed them all tonight. I would love to thank my fans, and inform you all that I couldn't have done this without you. Really I never meant to leave the story this long. Thank you all, and I don't know when my next fanfic will be, but I'll keep you all posted! Again, sooooooooooo sorry! :D

Twigfall felt like she was finally beginning to fit in with her new clan. Most of the she-cats had understood what she was feeling and tried to make her feel like she belonged there. They all knew they would have made the same choice she had if they'd been faced with that situation.

The toms, however, still looked at her as if she didn't belong.

But she was training hard, harder than she ever had, actually. Nighthawk was working furiously on trying to harden her pads, and teach her "special ShadowClan fighting". But mostly, it seemed like he was trying to get her to teach him all of ThunderClan's secret fighting moves.

Twigfall thought it was really weird how he was pushing her so hard for this information.

But she loved him, so she'd do anything for him.

"So how do you do that move again?" Nighthawk asked, trying to replicate the move. Twigfall showed it to him again, doing it slowly so he could watch carefully. He failed at it really bad, but she decided it was good enough-they could work on it later.

"Nighthawk, can we go hunting? I'm really hungry." Nighthawk looked at her, his jaw gaping open.

"You have to feed the clan first!"

"I know! I was in another Clan, you know! I know the code!" she snapped.

"Well, then you know you can't eat until you've provided for the Clan." He began to try going over another move when Twigfall interrupted.

"I know, that's why I'll hunt. Whatever I catch will replace the prey I take off the pile." Nighthawk still looked hesitant. "But whatever. I'll just go on my own."

With that, she turned and stalked away. She thought Nighthawk would have followed her, but to her surprise, he didn't.

Twigfall wasn't even very hungry, she just wanted to escape all that training. She found herself running toward the ThunderClan border.

Once she could smell the ThunderClan scent, Twigfall slowed down so as not to cross the border on accident. She was surprised to see Sootheart there, looking into the trees, worry evident on his face.

"Sootheart?" His ears perked up at the sound of his name, and his sister's voice. His eyes searched the trees for Twigfall, until they finally landed on her tabby-and-white pelt.

"Twigfall!" He raced over to her, licking her face. She did the same to him, happy to be reunited. "I'm so glad I found you! I think you're in trouble!"

"What in StarClan's name are you talking about? I'm just fine!" Twigfall reassured him. "Nothing's wrong, I'm not in trouble." But the worry didn't leave his eyes.

"Twigfall, I saw our mother. She said Twigkit dying was a sign, and that she wasn't going to sit back and watch her kit die because she gave her kit's brother too little information." Twigfall began to remember when Cinderheart had come to her dreams. She had said something about a prophecy and being crushed by a hawk… It was all a bit hazy now.

"Oh, come on, Sootheart. It was probably just you missing her now that I'm gone and dreaming about her." Sootheart's gaze hardened.

"I wasn't just dreaming. Something's off about Nighthawk, and I don't know what it is. Has mom said anything to you in your dreams?"

"Just some weird prophecy, but it's no big deal," Twigfall said. Why did Sootheart insist on this crazy idea?

"Just some prophecy! Twigfall, what was it? It's not a prophecy for no reason! It has to be important."

"Uhm… I think it was _'The cloud will drift away, and night will bar the bramble's path. A twig will rise to power, unless crushed by the love of a hawk'_ or something like that." Sootheart seemed deep in thought for a while, and Twigfall wondered if he'd gone insane.

"Well, you were told the prophecy, so it has something to do with you…" Sootheart was lost in thought again, and I was starting to get annoyed.

"You know we can't know what the prophecies mean!" I protested, trying to get him to think sensibly.

"But we can get a pretty good idea…" Sootheart trailed off. Then, his eyes lit up and a smile spread across his face. "I know what it means!"

"Really?"

"Yeah. Cloud has to be a cat, right? Cloudtail! And '_twig crushed by the love of a hawk'_? Nighthawk loves you…" His eyes widened in disbelief.

"What?"

"Cinderheart said she wasn't going to sit back and watch her kit die… Do you suppose…?" Sootheart looked at me questioningly, willing me to finish his question.

"Crush as in _kill_?" I shook my head and took a few steps back. "No, that can't be. He loves me!" Sootheart didn't argue, but I could tell he wasn't going to drop it.

"We have to tell Jayfeather." Sootheart turned to walk into the ThunderClan forest.

"Wait, I can't follow you! I'm ShadowClan now, remember?" He turned back to look at his sister, his gaze hardened in determination. Motioning with his tail, he opened his mouth to speak.

"As of right now you're not. Come on, this can't wait."


	21. The Discovery

Sootheart and Twigfall stood in the medicine cat den as Jayfeather thought about the prophecy.

"I agree with what you said about Cloudtail, and I'm pretty certain what you said about Nighthawk 'crushing' Twigfall is correct… We need to keep her away from him so nothing happens." He paced the den nervously.

"What does StarClan mean by _'will rise to power, unless crushed by the love of a hawk'_?" Jayfeather stood still for a moment before beginning to pace again.

"It seems there is a fork in the prophecy, meaning there are two outcomes." He stopped and stared in Twigfall's direction for a moment before turning to pace again. "So either the cat belonging to this prophecy will rise to power, or die."

Sootheart and Twigfall exchanged a nervous glance.

"So… What do we do?" Sootheart asked. Jayfeather began to make his way out of the den.

"We need to tell Bramblestar, see what he thinks of it."

The three cats made their way to the leader's den, getting strange looks from the other cats all the while. It must've been because of Twigfall.

"Bramblestar, we need a word with you," Jayfeather said as he peeked his head into the leader's den.

"Oh, Jayfeather, come in." Bramblestar made room for them as they entered and sat down facing him. "What have you come to talk about?"

"A prophecy._ 'The cloud will drift away, and night will bar the bramble's path. A twig will rise to power, unless crushed by the love of a hawk'. _What's your take on it?"

Bramblestar narrowed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"Well, Cloud could be a cat, right? Cloudtail, perhaps?" Jayfeather nodded and informed him that's what they had thought. "Bramble worries me… Seeing as I'm named Bramblestar."

Twigfall and Sootheart exchanged a look as Jayfeather agreed that bramble may mean him.

"Who dreamt this prophecy?" Jayfeather pointed to Twigfall.

"Cinderheart came to me and told me the prophecy. She told me I had left the Clan in ruins and to escape, or something like that…" Twigfall was staring at the floor of the den as Bramblestar thought for a moment.

"Well… I guess we'll have to wait and see." With that, Bramblestar flicked his tail and sent the three cats out of his den.

As they passed the warriors' den, they heard a bought of heavy, wet coughing. Jayfeather peeked his head in, looking around to spot the source. He pulled his head back out, turning to face Sootheart and Twigfall.

"Cloudtail's ill. You two go on and hunt or something while I tend to Cloudtail." Twigfall and Sootheart nodded and turned to the entrance to camp.

Squeezing through, they headed off toward the ShadowClan border to hunt.

"It's nice being able to hunt with you again," Sootheart said, staring straight ahead.

"Yeah, I missed you," Twigfall purred. "Nice to have you back."

"Then why'd you go?" Sootheart finally looked over at his sister. There was hurt in his eyes that melted Twigfall's heart.

"I told you… I love Nighthawk. I wanted to be with him."

"Wanted?" Sootheart asked suspiciously.

"Want." He looked away. "I know you want me to stay, but…"

"But you love him more than you love me. I get it, I do." Twigfall could tell that her brother didn't get it though. She really did love him, but Nighthawk meant the world to her.

"Congratulations on the kits," Twigfall mewed, trying to be friendly.

"Thanks," Sootheart muttered.

When they finally came within smelling range of the ShadowClan border to hunt, a strange noise began to come from the bushes.

"… Fox dung… Flea-ridden… Mange-pelt…!" Sootheart and Twigfall quickly scaled a tree and watched the bush the noise was coming from.

Before long, a black tom emerged from the bush.

"Nighthawk? What's he doing here?" Twigfall whispered. Sootheart drew his tail across her muzzle, signaling for her to be quiet or he'd hear them.

"She-cat can't be trusted!" He was clearly searching the underbrush, tracking someone's scent.

Twigfall gasped.

"He's looking for my scent! He'll find us!" Sootheart hushed her.

"He'll just assume you chased a squirrel across the border on accident or something and scaled a tree after it. No worries."

"But the scent is fresh!" Sootheart glared her down, telling her better shut up now or both of them would be in trouble.

"Said she was going hunting, ran off to ThunderClan… Well, I won't let her ruin my plans!" Plans?

The siblings watched as Nighthawk padded over to a hillside covered in fern. He prodded around for a second before his paw went straight through. He grinned in triumph.

"Leader of ThunderClan, here I come."


	22. The End

Twigfall and Sootheart raced into the ThunderClan camp to warn Bramblestar of Nighthawk's presence.

As they tore through the entrance, Jayfeather caught them.

"What are you two up to?"

"We have to warn Bramblestar!" Sootheart exclaimed as Twigfall ran ahead.

"Warn him of what?" Jayfeather looked utterly lost as to what was going on, though he also seemed sullen.

"Nighthawk's here… And we don't know why," Sootheart explained. "We came to warn Bramblestar of his presence.

"Nighthawk…? Why in StarClan's name would he be… Oh, never mind." Jayfeather shook his head. "Sootheart, Cloudtail had blackcough. He passed while you were away."

Sootheart's brain went numb. Blackcough? It couldn't be… The prophecy was fulfilling itself.

"Twigfall!" As Sootheart bounded to find her, she staggered out of the leader's den, eyes wide, mouth open, and sank to the ground. Nighthawk padded out behind her, grinning.

"Well hello, cats of ThunderClan," Nighthawk hissed. "How are you all?" The cats in the clearing looked at each other, wondering what was going on, while others were just entering the camp.

"ShadowClan intruder!" One cat from the crowd yowled.

"Now calm down. I'm not what you should be worried about right now. You're all without a deputy," he paused, glaring around, "_and_ a leader." Nighthawk grinned, revealing the blood staining his teeth.

Gasps and yowls of mixed confusion, grief, and hatred erupted from every cat. Sootheart only stared on in disbelief as Twigfall tried helplessly to escape, but Nighthawk held her back.

"Oh, sweetheart, aren't you happy? Your beloved mate is going to lead this Clan and make it all better," he said malevolently.

"You! Evil cat! I should've never trusted you!" Twigfall hissed. She flattened her ears to her head and barred her teeth at him.

"Come on, doll, don't hiss." He batted her ear with his paw, grazing the top of her head. "Be happy. I'm not going to kill you like I originally intended. I'm just going to make you have my kits so they can carry on my legacy."

"No!" Molepelt yowled, leaping up to face Nighthawk. Catching the tom off-guard, he tackled him, rolling them both off the edge. Molepelt got the upper-hand, landing on top of Nighthawk when they hit the ground.

Unfortunately, Twigfall had taught Nighthawk to counter that move.

Molepelt was thrown from atop the husky tom like a piece of limp meat.

"How…?" Molepelt looked to Twigfall, realization sparking in his eyes. "You gave up our secrets! How could y-!" He was cut off as Nighthawk delivered a blow to the side of his head, knocking the poor tom to the ground.

"Foolish mange-pelt," Nighthawk grumbled.

"Never!" Molepelt leaped up, pinning Nighthawk to the ground. "Lionblaze, help!"

Without any more, Lionblaze was at the tom's side, throwing his weight onto the traitor.

Twigfall stepped forward, hissing into Nighthawk's ear, "You lied to me, used me, and betrayed me." She looked to Molepelt, who motioned for her to do the honors. "Good-bye, Nighthawk."

Twigfall tore her claws into his throat, Lionblaze and Molepelt's bodies shielding the sight from the rest of the Clan.

Later that evening, Bramblestar and Cloudtail's cleaned bodies were drug into the clearing to be mourned over.

Buzz was still in the air about who was going to lead the Clan now. Twigfall, remembering the prophecy, took charge and decided she'd travel to the Moonpool to receive her nine lives.

"Molepelt, Lionblaze, and Jayfeather, you will accompany me to the Moonpool." The cats nodded, heading off to prepare for the trip, for it needed to be made as soon as possible.

Once everyone was ready, the patrol headed off.

Lionblaze and Jayfeather took the lead in silence, and Twigfall and Molepelt fell behind.

"Thanks for saving me," Twigfall mewed quietly. Molepaw blushed and looked away.

"It was nothing."

"No, you saved me. I owe you my life." She nuzzled him affectionately and he purred.

"So, you know how Gingerfern is having my kits?" Twigfall scowled.

"I'm aware."

"Well, they aren't mine." Twigfall gasped and looked at Molepaw in disbelief. "She met with an old friend of hers from when she was a kittypet and got together with him. She only told me a couple of sunrises ago." He looked away, a stray tear hitting the soft earth.

"What did you do?" Twigfall whispered.

"I did the only thing I could do, I ended things with her." The she-cat rubbed her fur against her old friend's.

"Good for you." He looked up and smiled.

"So… Are things with us… Still open?" Twigfall smiled and licked his muzzle.

"Of course."


End file.
